Against All Odds
by SharkbaitSekki
Summary: Being a young father is not easy, and newly-single Daichi, Oikawa, Bokuto and Kuroo come to learn this the hard way through the daily challenges of raising children on their own. However, all is not hopeless, and as the four of them meet in a support group program, they will come to learn that together, they can get through anything, and fight despite the odds stacked against them.
1. Week 1

**Author's Note**

**I've read some really good parent-child fanfics in this fandom and promised myself I wouldn't write any and then this happened. Sigh. They're just so cute, I'm a sucker for family fics. **

**Anyway, so this story is about 4 newly-turned-single fathers who are forced to attend bi-weekly support group meetings, since they don't have any other support system around them. They start off as strangers, and in the span of 6 weeks, become best bros. Because who can understand you better than someone who's going through the exact same thing as you? **

**I'll finally be making good use of my nursing classes on infants and children by including accurate information relating to the development and behaviours of children, so I'm sorry if you find some bits technical (I promise to keep the technical bits short, though. I hate them as much as you do haha). As for some of the circumstances, and mostly the functioning of the daycare, is going to be based on my personal experience during my internships in pediatrics, so it might not be similar to any systems you're familiar with. Oh, and they're... probably not in Japan hahaha. The school system I used is the more Western kind (because I didn't like the system in Japan, so yeah ;u; ), so you can pretend the story takes place in the USA or something. It isn't specified. **

**Anyway. This is a pretty light-hearted fic, mostly concentrating on single parent-child relationships, coping in difficult situations, and the hope of succeeding despite all of the odds stacked against them. I'm hoping to include varied situations and circumstances relating to the difficulties of being a single parent, so you'll see that all of the characters are very different, even if they end up in similar situations. **

**Please enjoy! 3**

* * *

**Week 0- Saturday **

Oikawa had always been good at diffusing awkward situations. He just had that natural _je-ne-sais-quoi_ that made all of the awkwardness in the air dissipate, and that urged all of the eyes in the room to turn to him as he said something brilliant (that he came up with thanks to his impressive wit), which in turn got rid of the tension in the air.

Oikawa had been in a lot of awkward situations, too. Like that one time he'd gone to the daycare principal's office and hadn't waited before entering and had caught the man -well in his fifties- painting his toenails. In retrospect, advising him to wait a bit more before applying the top coat polish probably hadn't been the best thing to do, but at least he hadn't had to bear any kind of tense silence back then.

It was probably an unexpected day off for his _je-ne-sais-quoi_. Nothing else could explain why he was still stuck in this tiny room, sitting on a folding chair in a circle with 4 other men his age, all of whom looked either incredibly embarrassed, or incredibly bored. And nobody spoke.

This was such bullshit. Maybe if he'd advised the principal on nail polish colours that complemented his personality, he wouldn't have been forced to attend this meeting.

"So," the silver-haired man sitting at the edge of his seat amongst the five of them started, elongating the 'o' a bit and only succeeding in making things more awkward. Everybody in the circle finally seemed to realize that they were in a meeting and made an effort to straighten -but just an effort- before looking at him. "We still haven't heard your names. But I supposed I should go first with the introductions to set the example."

There was a silent consensus that the silver-haired man should totally have a go at breaking the ice, and this seemed to put the man on the spot, though he didn't seem bothered by it. His smile still as sunny as ever, he bowed his head lightly at the others in the circle and began.

"My name is Sugawara Koushi," he introduced himself, eyes shining bright as he took in the four other men in the circle. "I am 21 years old, and I'm currently a university student majoring in sociology. I volunteered to take over this six-week support group project in the context of my 'Diverse Families in Society' class, and I will be the one leading our sessions from now on. It's nice to meet you all."

"Nice to meet you," Oikawa mumbled out with the three others, and crossed his arms.

"Well, I guess I'll go next," the black-haired man next to Sugawara sighed, and straightened up. As soon as he did, a cocky smirk split his face, his eyes glinting despite their half-lidded appearance. "My name is Kuroo Tetsurou, age 22, proud parent of a 3-year old since, well, three years ago, super-daddy extraordinaire since four months ago. Nice to meet you all."

"Nice to meet you."

"Super-daddy extraordinaire was totally what I was gonna say," the white-and-grey-haired man next to Kuroo grumbled, crossing his arms and pouting. "Fine. I'm Bokuto Koutarou, I'm 22, and owls are really cool. Nice to meet you."

"Nice to... meet you?" Oikawa raised an eyebrow, wondering why the guy looked so proud of himself all of a sudden.

"Um, Bokuto, maybe you would like to specify how long you've been a parent, and how long you're been a single father?" Sugawara laughed -bless his soul, Oikawa could already see how done the guy was- and waved to him again as if to continue.

"Oh, sure!" Bokuto nodded. "My kid's four, and he's exclusively been daddy's tiny man since 3 months ago."

"Nice to meet you," the group drawled again, and Oikawa wondered if he'd have time to grab some coffee before his kid's naptime if the meeting dragged on like this.

"Next please," Sugawara indicated, and Oikawa sat up straight in his highly-uncomfortable plastic chair and grinned, making his signature peace sign with his fingers.

"Yo! I'm Oikawa Tooru, 22 going on 23, and every since the birth of my wonderful two-year old, I've only been the most outstanding role model and the most doting parent to my wonderful son. Alas, two months ago, our family was met with a terrible fate, and I was left to raise my son all on my own, which I must say I executed incredibly well since-"

"Nice to meet you," Kuroo interrupted. "Next!"

"Oi, I wasn't done!" Oikawa protested, pouting. "I was gonna tell you how great of a dad I am!"

"Well if you're here with the rest of us, then you probably aren't THAT great," Bokuto mumbled, looking a bit embarrassed.

"I'll have you know that the daycare principal sent me here out of spite," Oikawa huffed, crossing his arms. "I should've told him that blue was more his colour..." he added under his breath.

"Umm... I'm not even sure I wanna know what you said there, buddy," Kuroo raised a brown at him, and then chuckled. "Let's just move on."

"Well then, I'm Sawamura Daichi," the last of them, who'd been surprisingly quiet so far, began, effectively stopping Oikawa's low whining. "Just turned 22, I have a three year-old, and I've been a single parent since four months ago."

"Wonderful. I'm very happy to meet everybody here," Sugawara exclaimed, and Oikawa wondered if the kid was running on Duracell. Duracell was Trusted Everywhere™ and looking at how bright his personality was, Oikawa wouldn't even be surprised if he had a few batteries lodged somewhere in his head. "So today was just an introduction, to help us get to know one another, since we'll be spending the next six weeks together, twice a week, here in this support group in order to facilitate your transition from parent to single parent, and to support one another as your children transition from a biparental environment to a monoparental environment."

"Fun," Kuroo mumbled, and the flat tone of his voice was very representative of how all of them felt being there.

"Now, I've made memo cards, one for each of you, which include your phone numbers, and some important other phone numbers, such as for the daycare, for your appointed social worker, the local drop-in clinic, and the poison control centre." He passed out said cards, and Oikawa was disappointed at how bland they were. If he was in charge of graphic design around here, maybe people would be more enthusiastic about receiving these things.

"Thank you, Sugawara," Sawamura was the first to acknowledge, and the silver-haired man actually beamed at the other.

"It's my pleasure! Now I think that cohesion is going to be the best asset we'll have in this group, so I encourage you all to get to know one another better until our next meeting. Which will be... this Thursday, so in five days! Then, we'll properly begin talking about how you all felt about this rather rough change in your lives, and work from there."

"I'll bring the Kleenex," Kuroo grumbled.

"I'll bring the ice cream," Bokuto added.

Oikawa raised a brow at them, and the two of them raised their brows at him.

"What?" he asked, confused.

"This is the part where you say you'll bring the chick flicks," Bokuto prompted.

"Hilarious. And by the looks of this room, then Sawamura will have to be in charge of bringing a TV set with a DVD player."

"Sounds like a plan!" Kuroo grinned.

"I was mainly just kidding," Oikawa sighed, rubbing his forehead.

"Oi, guys, it won't be that bad," Sawamura tried to step in, but Kuroo and Bokuto were snickering and Oikawa was 110% done with being there.

"Look, can we just leave? I really wanna pick my kid up and grab a coffee and go home," the brown-haired man groaned, pleadingly looking at Sugawara for an escape.

"Don't miss your manicure appointment," Kuroo snickered louder, Bokkuto muffling laughter into his hand.

"Alright, I'm out." There was only so much Oikawa could tolerate, and he could already feel the headache coming. "See you all on Thursday."

"You two are so immature!" Sawamura admonished, Kuroo and Bokuto looking at each other for a second before they grinned at him.

"We're just lightening the mood." And then, turning to Oikawa's retreating back. "See you Thursday, pretty boy!"

"Bye!" Oikawa threw over his shoulder, wondering if he'd have to put up with the two men's bullshit next time if only he remembered to drag his _je-ne-sais-quoi _along.

Leaving the room, he sighed and headed down the hall, towards the daycare area of the community centre. It was Saturday, so the classrooms he passed by were empty, but he headed for the gym where he knew his kid was being watched by the weekend sitter.

As he entered the gym, he spotted the sitter -Kenma? Probably? He should ask the kid if he needed help bleaching his hair, though, considering that his roots were showing a whole lot-, who was in the corner, sitting down and watching the kids play. A quick once-over of the room let Oikawa spot his son immediately, and almost as immediately, he was running to him.

"Shouyo!" he groaned, running a hand through his hair when his bright-haired son looked up at him. His twinkling eyes lit up when he spotted his dad, and suddenly, he was laughing.

Except when he laughed, the foot of the other child next to him, on which he was very happily chewing, fell from his mouth and hit the floor loudly.

"Ow!" the black-haired boy next to him exclaimed, pulling the leg closer to him to nurse it in all its wet, slobbery glory. "Shouyo! That hurt!" he whined, breath hitching.

"Okay, kiddo, no crying!" Oikawa laughed nervously, kneeling down next to the other child, who was definitely older than his, and who looked on the verge of tears. "You're a big boy, dry those tears, yeah?"

"It huuuurts," the kid whined, sniffling, and Oikawa briefly panicked.

"There, there, just calm down-"

"Yuu!" Another voice suddenly called from behind Oikawa, and he turned to see Sawamura poking his head through the door to the gym, looking for what he assumed was his child.

"Dad!"

And suddenly, the tears and the whining were gone, and so was the kid himself. Oikawa barely had time to turn when the other boy -Yuu, apparently- got up and dashed to his father, who was waiting for him with open arms.

"Dad!"

"Hey there, kiddo!" Sawamura laughed, hugging him, but probably noticed that his shirt had a wet stain on it when Yuu pressed himself against him. "Yuu, what is this?"

"This?" the kid looked down curiously, as if he hadn't even realized. "Oh, Shouyo tried to eat my leg but I didn't like it, so I gave him my foot instead."

"What?" Sawamura looked weirded out, more than anything else. "Umm... O-Okay?"

"Sorry about that," Oikawa apologized as he came near, Shouyo in one arm and Yuu's shoe and sock in the other. "He's still teething, so he likes chewing on anything and everything. Here."

"Thanks," Sawamura smiled briefly at him, accepting his son's things. "I'll apologize, too. Yuu doesn't have any self-restraint. We're still working on it."

"Shouyo asked, so I gave him what he wanted," the loud child defended him, but then fell quiet. "Well, he didn't ask, but... But he didn't complain!"

"Noya," Shouyo giggled from in Oikawa's arms. "Noya is funny."

"Well I'm glad you think so, baby," Oikawa groaned, briefly kissing his son's orange hair and eliciting a giggle from him. "But honestly, stop putting people's limbs in your mouth. You have toys for that."

"Well, I guess we'll be leaving. And Noya is going to have to take a shower today, since he got his foot dirty like that," Sawamura looked down at his son, amused by the horrified look on his face.

"No! Not the shark cave! I was just there one sleep ago!"

"You just had to play nice," the black-haired man sighed, and tugged him by his hand. "Come on. Say bye to Shouyo."

"Bye Shouyo," Yuu mumbled a bit more quietly, waving at the sunny child, who had his hand in his mouth.

"Say bye, Hinata," Oikawa murmured amusedly, and when his son didn't move, only stared at his friend, he pulled the hand out of his mouth and waved at Noya himself.

"Byebye, Noya," Shouyo exclaimed, as if just remembering the existence of the other boy, and then dragged his hand back into his mouth, effectively catching a few of Oikawa's fingers as well.

The brown-haired man sighed and casually wiped his wet fingers on his pants before heading towards Kenma to sign out his child. The teen, a student nurse studying to be in pediatrics, if he remembered correctly, just nodded at him as he signed off the paper, and wished them both a nice weekend before returning to his texting.

Oikawa briefly considered calling him out on the fact that he'd been too busy texting to realize that his kid had somebody else's _foot_ in his mouth, but right now, he really just wanted that coffee and to be on his way home.

"Daddy," Hinata cooed as they exited the gym, Oikawa ducking his head to avoid looking at Kuroo and Bokuto who were chit-chatting as they headed the opposite way, probably to pick their kids up as well. "I love you." Shouyo added as an afterthought, words muffled by the hand he had in his mouth.

"Me, too, kiddo," Oikawa sighed, walking into the elevator when it arrived and pressing the button for the ground floor.

"But what about mommy?" Shouyo added, however, as he continued to innocently chew on his hand, unaware that his dad's shoulders had become tense. "Where's mommy?"

"You know it's just daddy now, sunshine."

And Oikawa really really considered making that coffee alcoholic. Considering his circumstances, it wouldn't hurt to throw in a shot of vodka (or three).

...-...-...-...-...-...-...

**Week 1- Thursday **

"Look at what the cat dragged in," Bokuto greeted Oikawa with a smirk as soon as he stepped into the meeting room on Thursday evening, and Oikawa immediately considered leaving. He was so not down for this today.

"Cat!? Where!?" Obviously, the only person in the room to be so energetic this early in the morning was Daichi's kid, and that would have been obvious even if he hadn't been running around the room, chasing some imaginary monster.

"It's an expression, Noya. Do you want to come and sit down?" Sawamura sighed, looking pretty tired himself. But hey, Oikawa was wearing sunglasses, so he couldn't really tell.

"No," Noya exclaimed proudly, and kept running.

"Pathetic."

"Whoa, Tsukki," Kuroo laughed, briefly bouncing the blond on his knees. The kid did not even seem bothered (Oikawa gave him props for so masterfully ignoring his pain-in-the-ass dad), instead playing with his dinosaurs on his lap. "Be nice. Do you even know what that word means?"

"It means pathetic," the small child replied without even looking up, and Kuroo laughed again, ruffling his hair. That got him to look up, and Oikawa noted the cute square glasses he wore that were way too big on him. Did he really have to be the fashion coach for everyone around here?

"Alright, well, since everyone is here, we can begin," Sugawara attempted to get the situation under control, and Oikawa dragged his feet to the only available chair in the circle, dropping down on it. His eyes went to Bokuto, who was snoozing off on his chair, his own kid sleeping with his cheek smooshed against his dad's chest.

"Hey," Oikawa grumbled, kicking Bokuto's chair lightly. However, the small impact woke the white-haired man rather violently, and the kid on his lap screeched as Bokuto suddenly shot up. Thankfully, his reflexes were fast enough to catch his son before the kid tumbled to the ground, and by the looks of the dirty glare the tiny human was giving the big goof of a human holding him, this wasn't the first time this had happened.

"Yo, pretty boy," Bokuto greeted with a yawn, smoothing down his son's unruly hair while the kid grumbled sleepily. "What's with the shades?"

"You don't wanna know," Oikawa grumbled, feeling his eyes sting at the mention of his glasses.

"Well I kinda do, since I asked."

Oikawa raised a brow at him incredulously, and then pulled down his glasses just long enough for everyone to get a glimpse at his horrifyingly bloodshot eyes and the bruised bags hanging underneath. Quickly, however, he slipped the glasses back on and tried to ignore the put off looks he was getting from everyone.

"Dude, what happened?" Kuroo asked first.

"This thing," Oikawa replied irritably, pointing down at the bundle of sunshine currently sleeping peacefully in the baby sling he had on his front. "Got scared of monsters, peed his bed, and cried through the night."

"Oh, ouch."

"Every night since Monday night."

"Oh. Rest in peace, bro," Bokuto winced. "I've so been there. Keiji was a crybaby. He still is."

"I'm not," the kid, Keiji, huffed indignantly.

"You so are."

"I'm not."

"You are, you big crybaby."

"Dad, I'm not a crybaby."

"Alright, alright, settle down," Sawamura sighed hopelessly. "Noya, please come sit down."

"But daaaad!"

"I'm hungry," Kuroo's child mumbled, looking up from his dinosaurs.

"You just had a snack, Kei," his dad protested.

"I'm a big boy. I'm hungry."

"Dad, I'm not a crybaby."

"Oh yeah? You were about to cry when I told you it was bedtime yesterday."

"Dad look! I'm chasing the aliens out! I'm a superhero!"

"Noya, get over here please!"

"Oh my god," Oikawa groaned loudly, rubbing at his eyes tiredly. "Seriously? This literally could not get worse."

And then, Hinata woke up, and promptly began to cry.

Oikawa wondered if it would be okay for him to cry a little bit, too. Or a lot. A lot of crying sounded plenty appealing right now.

"Shouyo, baby, please don't cry," he groaned, his tired hands shaking as he undid his son from the carrier. As he did so, he realized that the noise in the room had finally died down, and that all eyes were on him as he struggled with the straps. Suddenly, he felt like crying so much more. "Come on, sunshine, tell me what's wrong. You're a grown-up boy now, so please don't cry..."

"Here."

Oikawa did not know how Sawamura had gotten to him so quickly, but he gave up when the other man's hands went to the straps and began undoing them in his stead. Leaning back, he tried to take a deep breath and keep the frustrated tears at bay as his acquaintance (support-group-mate? Fellow single father? Friend?) loosened the carrier and gently pulled his crying son away from him.

"Come now, Shouyo," he bounced the child softly, his cries shaking with every bounce rather comically. "Why don't you tell daddy why you're crying?"

"It huuuuuurts," the orange-haired toddler whined out, stuffing his hands in his mouth and crying around them.

"What hurts?" Oikawa was on his feet in a second, divesting himself of the carrier and not even bothering to hide the worry in his tone. Sawamura looked at him as if he had the answers, but Oikawa really had no idea what his son was talking about.

However, Hinata did not reply to him, only kept crying around his hands, and Oikawa was at a loss of what to do.

"Dad," Noya called out, tugging on Daichi's pant leg several times. "Does Shouyo want to eat my foot again?"

"Do I want to know?" Bokuto frowned, throwing Kuroo a glance, to which Kuroo replied by shrugging. "Hey, Yuu. Come over, let me see that cool shirt you're wearing."

"It's a tiger," Noya proclaimed proudly, leaving Daichi alone immediately in favour of showing off his clothes to Bokuto.

"Maybe his gums are hurting him. He's still teething for his back teeth, right? Try a chew toy," Kuroo suggested casually, and Oikawa nodded, opening the zip of his diaper bag and digging a bit before finding one of Hinata's much-loved chew toy.

"Here, baby. Is this what you want?" he asked, holding out the toy to his son, who was still crying over Sawamura's shoulder. Hinata looked at it two seconds before putting a slobbery hand out and grabbing it, stuffing the toy into his mouth promptly.

Oikawa held his breath for about three seconds and a half, and Hinata's crying finally began to die down.

"Oh my god," he sighed out, running a hand through his hair. "It worked."

"Here," Sawamura laughed, handing him back the child, who now seemed preoccupied with chewing on his toy. "Glad he's okay."

"Ten on ten parenting, everyone," Bokuto grinned at them all, giving them a thumbs up.

"Thank you," Oikawa let slip to Kuroo, who only waved him off.

"It's cool! That's the kind of thing we're here to do, right?"

"Right." This time, it was Sugawara that answered, and when they all looked at him, he was beaming. "That was an incredible example of cooperation, everyone. I'm really glad we got to see that tag-team action, and I'm really hoping that we'll get to see it again throughout our six weeks."

"You speak too highly of me," Kuroo joked, looking down at his son when the blond tugged at his shirt.

"I'm hungry. If I cry, will you give me food?"

"We don't cry for things like that, Kei," Kuroo chided. "If you sit quietly for a bit, I'll give you a snack, alright?"

"Hmm."

"So I asked you all to bring your kids in for the first part today," Sugawara continued pleasantly. "I just wanted to give you all a feel for your parenting styles and your children's personalities, since a parent is nothing without their child."

"My daddy is nothing without me," Noya echoed in an awed whisper, followed by Sawamura's exasperated "Yuu...", and Oikawa couldn't help but be a teensy tiny bit relieved that he was here with these guys.

"I wanted to let you get acquainted with the children as well, since it will be imperative to know how their development is progressing on a more general scale when you share stories or try and give each other tips. I'd also like for you all to watch how the children develop after this major disruption in their lives. The loss of a parental figure, especially that you've all told us that the loss is fairly new, can often be traumatic, or at least disturbing to the child, and picking up on behavioural or psychomotor problems early on is the key to providing them with the proper help they need to get back on track."

"Did you get any of that, kid?" Bokuto asked to his son, who was playing with a toy car on his leg.

"No."

"Me neither," he laughed, but then noted the stares thrown at him. "I'm kidding, of course I got it. Just had to make sure the kids got lost in translation."

"Right, well, how about we take 20 minutes so that you can take the kids to the after-hour sitter service, maybe grab a coffee from the cafeteria, and then we can be back to talk about things that we probably want to be lost in translation?" Sugawara suggested, and there was no voiced complaint from any of them.

"I have to go," Keiji complained quietly to Bokuto, who stood up immediately and took his hand.

"Okay, everyone, I'm taking the little man to the little boy's room, and then to the sitter. Be back later!" Waving, he made his dramatic exit whilst his son quietly begged him to stop.

Kuroo laughed a bit, and then suddenly stood up, picking Kei up as he went. The blond made a small noise of surprise but immediately latched onto his father, a bit grumpily if anything.

"Well, my little man-"

"I'm not little."

"Okay. My big man is hungry, so I'm gonna take him directly to the gym and give him a snack. I'll be back, too," Kuroo excused himself, grabbing his bag off the floor and leaving out the door, Kei still quietly playing with his dinosaur figures behind his back.

This only left Sugawara in the room with Oikawa and Sawamura, and the student began looking through his notes, so Oikawa figured he wouldn't bother him.

"Thanks for earlier, by the way," the brunet called out to Sawamura, who was trying to get Noya still enough to hand him a drink of water.

"No problem," Sawamura smiled at him. "You looked like you needed the help, and Noya says I'm pretty good at carrying him, so I figured I might give it a shot."

"When my dad carries me, it's like I'm flying like an airplane," Noya butted in, always as energetic, and Oikawa chuckled.

"Well, you're already running fast around the room, almost like a race car. Are you gonna be a boat next?" he humoured the child, knowing that Hinata would be at that stage in about a year, and that preparation was the key.

"No." Noya crossed his arms, glaring. "If I'm a boat, it means I have to go in places like the shark cave. I don't like the shark cave."

"Shower," Sawamura clarified with a laugh. "He doesn't like taking showers, but he's a dirty little man, so he always needs them."

"I'm not dirty!" Noya protested, circling Sawamura when he stood up. "I'm not dirty!"

"You roll around on the floor and you get all dusty, Yuu. That sounds pretty dirty to me," his dad smirked, revelling in his son's half-assed denial. Oikawa, too, couldn't help but chuckle, and pulled back Hinata just long enough to look into his big brown eyes and kiss his forehead.

Hinata giggled around his toy and laid back down against Oikawa's shoulder.

"Are you headed to the gym now?" Sawamura asked him, pulling him out of his reverie.

"Yeah, might as well," Oikawa shrugged, sighing as he removed his sunglasses, figuring that it couldn't be that bad without them. Besides, he couldn't see a thing with them on inside, and he wasn't too keen on walking into a wall. People might get the wrong impression if they put the bloodshot eyes and the terrible coordination together.

Grabbing his bag, he accompanied Sawamura to the daycare and signed Hinata in, leaving him with his snack and a kiss to the forehead.

...-...-...-...-...-...-...

When they returned with a coffee in hand each, Bokuto and Kuroo were looking at pictures on Kuroo's phone and were snickering.

"That's the time he was caught singing to his dinosaurs," Kuroo pointed on his screen, and then looked up at the newcomers. "Yo, come see this. My kid's a nerd and I got it all on film."

Oikawa and Sawamura huddled behind the two curiously and looked down just as Kuroo played the video on his phone.

It started off as Kuroo's soft breathing as he approached where Kei was playing in the living room, his son obviously not noticing him. Soon, there was the sound of childish singing, and Kuroo snickered both in the video and in real life. Oikawa had to admit that it was kind of cute to hear the grumpy blond singing like that, even if the song was something off of Sesame Street, or Dora, or something.

As the video zoomed in on Kei, they all cracked a smile when they noticed that he was cradling his dinosaur figures and rocking them as if he was putting them to sleep. His chubby cheeks were dusted pink and he tried to catch his breath as he sang, and soon, the Kuroo in the video just couldn't resist.

"Hey, little man. What are you doing?" Kuroo's voice asked off screen, and the four of them burst into laughter when Kei suddenly jumped, dropping his dinosaurs.

"Dad, go away!" he screeched, eyes wide and face flushed red now.

"No, no, I thought that was pretty cool," Kuroo insisted, coming closer. "You sing so nicely. How come you never sing to me?"

"You're an adult. You don't need lullabies," Kei huffed as if it was common logic, and seemed to settle down as his dad sat down next to him, camera still trained on his face.

"So your dinosaurs aren't adults?"

"No. They're babies."

"Like you?"

"I'm not a baby. I'm three years old."

"How old are your dinosaurs?"

"Ummm..." Kei put a finger to his lips and looked up at the camera as if it was a trick question. So Kuroo asked again.

"How old are your dinosaurs, Kei? Almost as old as you?"

"No. They're babies. Baby dinosaurs. Like two years old," the blond decided, squawking when his dad ruffled his hair, knocking his huge glasses askew. It was rather endearing, especially when he grumbled while putting them back in their place over his nose, and the video ended on one of Kuroo's fond chuckles.

"My tiny child," Kuroo sighed when the video ended, putting his phone away.

"Honestly, though," Bokuto sighed. "Akaashi is as quiet as Kei, but he won't secretly be into this kind of fun stuff. He's always mumbling under his breath and talking to himself when he plays."

"That's probably just his personality," Sawamura suggested. "On the contrary, Noya can't sit still. It's a miracle if I put him to bed at night and don't hear him playing pretend very loudly until he falls asleep."

"Hinata just drools," Oikawa contributed, feeling incredibly constructive today. "Nah, but, he'll get energetic when he wants to. Mostly, he's just super affectionate, though. I feel like he's too busy still discovering himself to pay attention to things around him, though."

"Probably his age," Bokuto noted. "He's two, right?"

"Yeah," Oikawa nodded, crossing his arms. "But I don't know. I googled it, and I feel like he should be past all that already."

"Well, every kid progresses at their own pace," Kuroo shrugged. "If nothing worrying is going on, let him discover himself a little more."

"Yeah. For example, Yuu was toilet trained pretty late, but he's still doing fine today. Don't worry too much about it," Sawamura patted him on the back, and they all split to return to their seats.

"Are we good to go?" Sugawara asked when they all sat down and took a sip of their much-needed coffee, followed by a round of nods. "Alright then. In order to provide proper support between single parents, it's going to be important to know what's missing in the picture. So, in any amount of detail you'd like to include, I would like everyone to take a turn at sharing the reason why they are suddenly a single parent." Sugawara's eyes went over the four of them sharply. "Please don't feel pressured. Talking about it will definitely help, but if you're not ready for something this heavy, just say you'd like to skip, and we'll skip."

There was a small silence, and eyes began darting to the side, trying to see if anyone would actually volunteer to start with such a heavy subject. The whole thing reminded Oikawa of the awkwardness of the first day.

Thankfully, his _je-ne-sais-quoi_ had woken up on the right side of the bed today, and had been rather active throughout his day.

"I'll go first," he volunteered cheerfully, trying to ignore how exhausted he actually was. "Mine's actually pretty simple. I'm gay."

Silence again. Oikawa tried to figure out why, but the weird looks he was getting made him realize something that scared him a lot more than he thought it would.

"Oh wait. Please don't tell me we have to go through the 'Adam and Eve, not Adam and Steve' speech. Because I am way past that, thank you very much."

"No, no," Kuroo quickly corrected the misunderstanding, but the weird look didn't fade. "Ain't nothing wrong with being gay, my friend."

"Just..." Bokuto picked up, as if he knew where Kuroo was going. "You have a son."

"... And?" Oikawa asked, not understanding how that was relevant.

"Well, having a kid usually means that you put your-"

"I get it, I get it," Oikawa cut him off before he could go any further. "I got married anyway because I figured it was a passing thing."

"Oh man, that's bad," Bokuto winced. "When did you find out? About being gay?"

"Oh, during the honeymoon."

Silence again. Maybe Oikawa's _je-ne-sais-quoi_ was out of shape?

"Man," Kuroo finally began to chuckle in earnest. "That's one hell of a story. Take it the wife didn't take that too well?"

"Well I didn't tell her right off the bat. Stress is no good for a pregnancy, after all," Oikawa pouted, huffing. "Told her about a year after Shouyo -Hinata was her last name- was born. Soon after, the divorce was being filed, and we settled it about two months ago. I've got full custody."

"Well, there's that," Sawamura smiled at him, his tone indicating that he was fully supportive. Oikawa sensed that they all knew that there was a detail he wasn't mentioning, but honestly, he was way too tired to even pretend that this unmentioned detail wasn't what had hurt the most. So he left it at that.

"Yup. Well, that's me," he urged them to move on.

"I guess I'll go next," Sawamura volunteered. "Noya -Nishinoya in full, but he prefers Noya to Yuu- was the unexpected result of a drunken fling back in college. He's not a mistake but my partner was." He grumbled the last bit out as if spiteful, and Oikawa totally understood where he was coming from. Thankfully his college one-night stands never ended up in an unwanted pregnancy. But then again, it was probably because he only ever fucked dudes. "Anyway, she didn't realize she was pregnant for a long time, almost into the third trimester, and by that time, it was too late for an abortion. Her parents are rich so she got a specialist to induce birth around the 32rd week, and they put Yuu in a hospital since he was pretty underdeveloped. He's got asthma now because he was out so early."

"Bitch," Kuroo muttered under his breath, but Oikawa fully understood the sentiment. Hinata had been an underweight infant when he'd been born, and he'd been born at 37 weeks. He couldn't even imagine how distressing it must've been for Sawamura to see his terribly underdeveloped infant out so quickly because his girlfriend didn't want to be pregnant.

"But I just heard these stories in passing," Sawamura continued, as if reading their minds. "I wasn't actually there. In fact, she didn't even come into contact with me until after Yuu was about... 12 months old. She kind of just dropped the facts on me over the phone and asked that I help her out. That wasn't too bad at first. Her parents were taking care of Yuu rather well, so I only dropped by to see how he was doing. But then, she went back to school and kind of just gave me our kid to keep, and she was the one dropping by every so often. About six months ago, she got accepted into a really prestigious university, so her parents hired a lawyer to do a quick and quiet legal procedure to give me full custody of Yuu, and then she was gone for good."

"Gotta protect the family reputation, huh?" Oikawa clicked his tongue, displeased. "Pretty cowardly move, if you ask me."

"Yeah. I wasn't too happy with it, either, especially since Yuu was much more comfortable with her. Getting him used to me was hell, but at least he made it before she left for good. Broke his heart, though."

"Considering what the kid's been through, I'm surprised to see him in such good shape," Bokuto smiled softly, a knowing look in his eyes. "He's the most energetic of the whole bunch."

"And for that, I'm grateful," Sawamura laughed sheepishly. "It's a handful sometimes, but I'm really happy to see that he's not letting his health and his mother's disappearance get to him. I'm kind of concerned for how he'll do in school, though, since it already feels like he's got some behaviour problems, but I've been ready for that since I read up on pre-term infants. We'll burn that bridge when we get there."

"That's an incredible story. Kudos to you for being so strong through it, Sawamura," Sugawara conceded, impressed.

"Please call me Daichi. My parents call me Sawamura. And last time they did, they were yelling it over the phone," he laughed a bit uncomfortably.

"Well, Daichi, that is a very inspiring story. I'm glad you decided to share it with us," Sugawara smiled at him, to which Daichi shyly smiled back, his eyes conveying how much he appreciated the well-placed praise.

Oikawa wondered how long it'd take for them to get together. He gave them three weeks.

"So who's going next? Bokuto?" Sugawara prompted, waving at the white-haired man.

"Nah, I'll pass," he replied, surprisingly, leaning back into his chair with his arms crossed.

"Well, there is no pressure, but it really will help not only us, but also you if you choose to talk about it," Sugawara encouraged him kindly, and Oikawa wondered if there was an inch of malice in the kid (who was only two years younger than him, at best, mind you). Everything he said came out sounding like some holy message from God's own angels.

"It's been a long day, so I kinda don't feel like saying much," Bokuto brushed him off. "Maybe some other time. Or not."

"Alright..." Though Sugawara did not seem to want to let go, and actually looked indecisive over what to do next, he finally conceded with a sigh. "Kuroo, then? Would you like to share?"

"Mine's one of the more dramatic ones," the black-haired man chuckled, though his chuckle was a bit awkward. "But, yeah... Long story short: my girl got hepatitis while on vacation, and wasn't able to beat it. She passed away a few months ago."

"Sorry for your loss," Sugawara offered sympathetically, and Kuroo nodded gratefully to him.

"Thanks. Though I guess it could have been worse. She fought it for half a year before it got the best of her, and we all kind of knew that the prognosis wasn't looking up, so we had time to prepare Kei for the separation. I don't think he quite understands that she's never gonna come back, but... it might sound a bit selfish, but I'm happy to keep him in the dark for now."

"And how are you taking it?" Sugawara asked, still considering his feelings. Oikawa gave him silent props again for being empathetic to a fault whilst avoiding sounding pitying.

"Better than I thought I would... I know I mostly came to accept her death while she was still alive, but I actually feel a bit guilty for moving on so quickly," Kuroo winced, rubbing the back of his head nervously. "Kei was an accident that we decided to go through with. We weren't thinking about marriage, but we moved in together and figured we'd see where things took us. I think the hardest part was losing someone who'd been guiding me on how to take care of my kid. It's really hard to be two parents at once."

"It's admirable that you've moved on quickly, though. As long as you've had your time to grieve and find closure, there is nothing to feel guilty about," Sugawara assured him. "As for the difficulty of being two parents at once, it is a difficulty shared by all four of you, and this is what this support group is about. You won't replace your lost partners, but you certainly will provide the necessary support for one another in times of need."

"Amen," Oikawa nodded.

"Now. All four of you are here because you are new and relatively young single fathers. The principal of the daycare here at the community centre is aware of your situations, and it is general practice to send all new single parents without outside support into a support group. So please don't feel like being here means that you are bad parents, or that you are incompetent. In fact, the fact that you are here means that you are willing to seek help and do the best for your children, and it's the best thing a parent can do," Sugawara recited as if he had written the speech and practiced it in front of his mirror.

This seemed to bolster everyone's confidence a little bit, and the silver-haired man smiled at the sight of their relaxed shoulders.

"So. Let's begin by bringing out some problems you might have at the current moment. There's no problem that can be resolved in just one sitting between us five, but talking about it may give you some insight on how to deal with it and where to seek your resources. Plus, if any of you have been through a similar problem before, sharing the experience can be a very valuable tool for the others. So, who'd like to go first. Daichi? You mentioned Noya's problems a bit before. Would you like to elaborate?"

"There's not much to say," Daichi shrugged. "Yuu is small and underweight, something like the 30th percentile in both categories, but his doctor says that it's not a matter of nutrition, but more of the hormone disruption that occurred when he was born prematurely. If it doesn't resolve by the time he goes to school, they're going to put him on hormone replacement therapy to try and get him to grow a little. Asides from that... he's got asthma, but he knows to take his puffers. He'll need help with them, but he's been sick a lot as a kid, so he can recognize when he needs his medication."

"Nice. You've got a pretty tough kid," Kuroo commented. "Sounds like he's doing pretty well despite everything."

"Yeah. I'm glad that physically, I don't have to worry. But I'm more concerned about his behaviour," Daichi winced as if remembering something. "He's loud and impulsive and doesn't pay attention at all, and only goes off doing what he wants. I did some research on ADHD, but it's hard to tell at this age since children are naturally energetic. I don't want to ignore the signs, but I also don't want to make a big deal out of it. And I thought of taking him to the doctor, but the drop-in clinics are generally packed to the brim, and I work all the time, so I don't want to go get it checked unless it's bad."

"Maybe try and be sterner with him?" Oikawa suggested. "It's not easy to do, but if you crack down some more on the kid, maybe you can get him to understand that he needs to sit when he's asked to sit, and he can play when you let him play."

"I think it'll also be more apparent if it's ADHD or just his personality when he starts school. Daycare doesn't do much for finding those things out, since most of the time, the kids are playing anyway, but if you wanna tighten the rope and see how it goes when he starts school, it might give you a clue," Bokuto suggested, and Oikawa had to give it to him. Perhaps he wasn't as much of an airhead as he'd thought at first.

"Probably. Anyway, that's my current concern in a nutshell," Daichi nodded. "Anybody wanna go next?"

"I'll go," Bokuto volunteered, sitting up straighter. "Mine's more of the fact that Keiji is too quiet for a four-year old. And when I mean quiet, I mean really really quiet. Like... I see him through the windows when he's in daycare sometimes, and he'll just sit in his corner and play without making a peep on his own. Other kids will try and get him to play, but he'll refuse and sit alone. I've asked the educator, and she told me that he'll follow orders and pay attention to directives, and he's conscious of other kids around him, but he's kind of... solitary? I guess? I dunno if I should be worried or not."

"Has he said anything about that?" Daichi asked. "Like, have you asked him why he prefers being alone?"

"He didn't specify. Every single time, he just says he wants to play alone and leaves it at that," Bokuto shook his head.

"Have you tried to get him to try new things?" Kuroo mused out loud. "At that age, it's all about initiative-taking so that they can discover the world around them on their own. Maybe he's afraid of trying new things and so he prefers staying in his comfort zone?"

"Maybe," Bokuto made a thinking noise, looking at the ceiling as if the answer was written on it. "Do you think I should read up more on what's expected of them at that age?"

"Sorry to interrupt," Sugawara apologized, raising his hand slightly. "But if you want to know more about children and initiative-taking, you should refer to Erikson's theory of psychosocial development. At the preschool age, 4 to 6, they love to take initiative, but if they fail, they'll feel guilty about it. It might be that Keiji is trying to take initiatives and is failing, which is making him close up on himself."

"How can I get him out of his bubble, then? I can't stay with him all day at the daycare to get him to play with others, and stuff..." Bokuto groaned.

"Well, Kei used to be really quiet, and he still is. He's still a bit young to be in the initiative-taking stage, but he's discovering how to interact with his environment, and I used to be really worried to see him never really exploring," Kuroo recounted. "He'd play with his dinosaurs all day in his corner, and was averse to leaving his spot to go anywhere, so I wasn't sure what to do. But then I took him out one day and he made a comment about how the dinosaurs told him to hold my hand while crossing the street, and I realized that all this time, he was taking in the environment around him and was integrating that knowledge, but was never interested in actively pursuing more discovery."

"That's cute. Did you push him to explore a bit more after that?" Oikawa asked, curious.

"Just a little. Took him to the park and talked to him, often through his dinosaurs, and took him to the mall to get him used to crowds and crowd safety... He's pretty quiet about it, but I can definitely see that he's learning as he goes," Kuroo chuckled, turning to Bokuto. "So maybe Keiji is doing the same thing- learning without showing it. It would definitely help if you maybe sat down with him and tried to understand why he doesn't like playing with other kids, since social relationships are important already at that age, and daycare is a great place to develop those skills."

"I'll do that. He's pretty closed with me, so I don't know if I'll get to figure out what's inside his head anytime soon. Or at all. I can just keep prying and hope he talks to me," the white-haired man sighed, crossing his arms. "That's all for me."

"Kuroo, how do you know so much about developmental theory, anyway?" Daichi asked curiously, raising an eyebrow at the other man, who only smirked cockily.

"I told you, I'm a super-daddy. Nine months is a pretty long time to prepare, contrarily to popular misconception. I prepared thoroughly from the start," Kuroo answered confidently. Oikawa had to give it to him. Kei being three years old, that meant that Kuroo had been 19 years old when he'd begun preparing for fatherhood. Oikawa himself hadn't been that much older when he'd gotten news of Shouyo's conception, 20, if he remembered right, but he sure as hell wasn't a super-daddy like Kuroo.

He disliked being beaten at his own game, though. If he remembered right, he had a few books on child psychology lying around in his apartment. It couldn't be that hard to read up a bit, right?

Wrong, his bloodshot eyes reminded him. He would need all his sleep if he wanted to stop looking 10 years older than he actually was. Sleep or that new foundation he'd been meaning to try out but had never found in his skin tone. Perhaps it was time to visit the beauty store again. They probably had missed their poster child customer. Or, if that didn't work out, then hopefully Hinata would let him sleep tonight.

"Kuroo, you seem pretty well-set with Kei. Do you have any concerns?" Sugawara prompted.

"Umm... well, I dunno if it counts, but I'm mostly concerned about money stuff more than anything else," Kuroo admitted, looking a bit embarrassed.

"Of course," Sugawara assured him. "Financial trouble is often a problem in single-revenue households. Would you like to elaborate?"

"Well, I mean, it's pretty straightfoward. I work three jobs because I'm footing my girl's hospital bill even now, on top of the apartment and Tsukki's needs. And it's all fine because I make ends meet every month, but working three jobs, all at minimum wage, is taking a lot out of me, and I'm kind of scared that I'm not taking care of Kei like I should because I'm too tired all the time," he explained, not daring meet anybody's eyes.

"But dude, that's like... zero chill time for you. You can't do that," Bokuto protested, frowning. "Every man needs some down time. And super-daddy or not, you're just a man like every other one of us peasants here."

"Who are you calling a peasant?" Oikawa gasped, actually a bit offended.

"Don't be pissy about it, pretty boy. We're all in the same basket here," Bokuto shrugged as if it was obvious. "FUDBARs, all of us."

"FUD...BARs...?" Daichi asked, not seeming sure.

"Yep. Fucked Up Dads Beyond All Recognition," Bokuto explained proudly, drawing a laugh from Kuroo.

"Pretty sure that's not how the actual expression goes, but you're right," he chuckled lowly. "Anyway. I acknowledge that it's all fucked up, but I really really want to go back to school, so I'm blitzing the jobs right now so that the day that Kei gets into kindergarten, I can drop a couple and go back to college myself. I'm still doing almost 60 hours every week, though, 9 hours every day except Saturdays, and I'm kinda worried I'm alienating Tsukki. He just lost one parent, I really don't want him to feel like he's losing the other one, too."

"You really are a role-model," Bokuto gaped, looking incredibly impressed. "Seriously. Will you father my child?"

"Bokuto, you can do that yourself," Kuroo laughed. "But I'll babysit if you want. Kei might like a quiet playtime partner."

"Yo, it's a date," Bokuto replied with a grin, and the two first-bumped one another, looking very satisfied.

Oikawa watched their antics a bit uncomprehendingly, and then sighed, shaking his head.

"Honestly, you two... It feels like you're the ones who are 3 years old," he chuckled. "Anyway, Kuroo. I've been on the multi-job train, and I gotta tell you, you're really good for holding three jobs at once. I only did two and it was exhausting. But at the same time, knowing what that feels like, you might wanna reconsider it, because a burn-out is definitely not worth it. And it won't help you or Kei if you're out of commission for a few days."

"I know. I just don't know what else to do. I can't afford to borrow any money because interest rates are gonna have my head if I go into that domain, and my family's not very happy with my life choices, so I can't expect any help from them," Kuroo winced. "I guess I just gotta take a deep breath and power through it. If all goes well, Kei can go to kindergarten in two years, and I can drop one job then. Probably the one that's paying cash right now." He stopped for a second and bit his lip. "I probably shouldn't have admitted that."

"Everything that is said in this room remains confidential," Sugawara reminded them quickly. "And while I'm at it, Kuroo, would you like me to research some options for financial help for single parents? Working two registered jobs probably makes you unqualified for governmental help, but there are plenty of other organizations that offer help for people like you."

"Eh, I mean... I could do it myself..." Kuroo interrupted himself with a sigh. "But hey, if it's no bother. I'd really appreciate that. It's just that... I really really don't want any pity. Obviously, I'm gonna do everything I can to provide for my kid, but I don't want help because I'm a sorry case. Cause I'm not."

"Empowerment is crucial for single parents. You're not a pity case, and you're holding yourself up very well so far. Letting us share your burden, no matter how small part of it we bear, is definitely gonna help you get yourself together long enough to find a permanent solution," Sugawara smiled at him, and Kuroo hazarded a smile back.

"Thanks. I just promised that I wouldn't let Kei's mom's death affect our way of life on the long run, but it's proving to be a bit harder than I thought at first," he laughed sheepishly, ruffling his bedhead hair. "Anyway. I'll make sure not to get scheduled on Thursday evenings and Saturday mornings so you guys never have to miss my pretty face around these parts."

"Don't flatter yourself," Daichi chuckled softly.

"Yeah, man. We've already got a pretty boy around here," Bokuto grinned, looking over at Oikawa. "Speaking of whom. You wanna lay your cards down on the table, or...?"

"I'm no big deal. Typical parent with a two year-old," Oikawa shrugged. "I'm just kinda concerned about his potty training. Shouyo's 26 months old now, and I've read that he should already at least have shown signs of wanting to be potty trained. But he literally does not even care and doesn't even mention it when he dirties his diaper. I'm not sure if I should start prompting him or wait a bit longer so I don't pressure him and make him nervous..."

"Sometimes, traumatic events can delay the instinct to potty train. How did Shouyo react to losing his mother?" Bokuto asked, seeming to know what he was talking about. Oikawa decided to trust the elegant curve of his raised eyebrow.

"He still hasn't understood. He keeps asking where she is, but no matter what I tell him, he seems to brush it off. Sometimes he'll cry at night for her, or wake up and ask for her, but asides from that, he doesn't seem particularly distressed about it."

"Kinda like Kei," Kuroo sighed. "It might be a compensatory mechanism, is my theory. Maybe they're in denial, or refuse to make the links between the information we give them and they get on their own."

"I thought of that, but honestly, how do I talk to my two year-old about something like denial?" Oikawa rolled his eyes. "Like, 'hey Shouyo! Do you even understand that mom's never coming back? Cry lots and learn to live without her, but don't ask for her because she's gone for good'. Bet that'll work out just fine." And he may have said that with just a little too much bitterness. And the others may or may not have caught on to the bitterness, judging by the way they looked at him.

"Maybe try and push him a little bit forward," Daichi hummed in thought. "Like... make him aware that it's something he should be thinking about. Like, ask him often if his diaper feels dirty, or if he needs to pee or poo. If he understands that it's something worth his attention, he might be more inclined to start potty training."

"That sounds like a good idea," Oikawa nodded. "Thanks. I'll try it out."

"Kids learn a lot from watching adults, though," Bokuto began, and by the smirk on his face, his next words already felt like they were not going to be as constructive as his advice from before. "Maybe you should wear a diaper around the house, too. Just to set the example."

The four others in the room laughed loudly as Oikawa squawked, the simple image of himself in a diaper making him feel undignified. However, as he huffed and felt his pale cheeks burn up in embarrassment, he realized that the blush on his face was probably the most colour he'd had in a long time.

Maybe being here isn't so bad, he began to think. Maybe fighting against the odds, side-by-side with these guys, really isn't all that bad, he began to believe.

* * *

**Author's Note**

**Just the intro for now. Setting up the setting and introducing our characters. Honestly, I love the captains so much, urgh, their broship fucking slays me. **

**The ships in this are mainly DaiSuga and IwaOi. But what about Bokuto and Kuroo, you ask? And to that, I answer: being a single parent doesn't mean finding love again. This is what I mean when I say that there is going to be representation for all kinds of single parent situations. Some of them will be happy, others will struggle, some will find solutions, others will break, some will find love, others will find companionship and be happy anyway. The only thing that is a known constant in this story is that these 4 idiots are going to become best bros. Which is honestly the most exciting bit, urghhh I can't wait to post the next chapter. **

**Which is already done and waiting to be posted, so quick note about my posting schedule! To keep with the theme of the story, updates will be on either Thursdays or Saturdays. I'll try to update once a week, since these chapters are much shorter than the chapters for CML, for example, but life gets incredibly busy, so I can't promise weekly updates. I can estimate not to take longer than 2 weeks at a time, though!**

**Hope you like the beginning of this silly little project. I'm having tons of fun writing it, so I hope you're having tons of fun reading it! Please leave comments if you have any at all, and see you next time (:**

**-SS**


	2. Week 2

**Author's Note**

**/EDIT:/ My friend made fanart for the first scene in chapter 2, please love the heck out of her by reblogging it. You can view the pic by checking out the story on AO3 ;u; Or if you're down, by going to ****unitedfree on Tumblr, and /post/115789831636. **

**Kindly open a Youtube tab and play the song "Turn Down for What" while reading the first part of this chapter. Trust me, you'll know when to stop it. Also, trust me, it'll be hilarious. I promise. Or maybe I just have a dumb sense of humour?**

**Just to address some concerns from the last chapter! Hinata is Oikawa's kid, and not Kageyama, because Kageyama fits in elsewhere and I love his relationship with Oikawa (you'll meet him this chapter). Their relationship is more similar to canon this way than if Kageyama was Oikawa's kid. Also, Kuroo and Kenma won't explicitly have a romantic relationship, but they're BFFs and Kenma is Kuroo's babysitter of choice, so you can put on a pair of pairing goggles and I won't mind at all. Besides, Kuroo's and Bokuto's relationship is going to develop into something so intimate that I didn't feel like having a lover for each would be pertinent? Please feel free to make fanfiction out of this fanfiction though haha. **

**Now's a good place to start playing "Turn Down for What". The intro will be done by the time you finish reading this author's note so you can immediately jump into the story with your hella swag background music. **

**No warnings this chapter, just lots of ridiculous dorks and their ridiculous children, and then feels. Please enjoy!**

* * *

**Week 1- Saturday**

Seriously though. This was probably the coolest that all four of them had ever looked in their entire lives. Everyone always said that there was strength in unity, but nobody ever mentioned how there was so much casual _swag _in unity.

'Turn Down for What' could have been playing in the background as the four of them turned the bend in the pedestrian road splitting the park, footsteps clicking in sync on the hard asphalt. As the trees cleared up and the playground came into view, Kuroo swore that the wind blowing through his hair made the entire moment feel like it was happening in slow motion.

Four dads, four pairs of sunglasses, four kids, just casually making their way down to the playground. People practically moved out of their way as they swaggered through, highly aware of all the awed gazes upon them, almost similar to how Moses had parted the Red Sea to lead his people to salvation (and these dads, their kids to the playground, which was kind of the same thing).

Oikawa's light brown hair was ruffled by the wind, reminiscent of an intentional bedhead look that he completed by smirking attractively at all the ladies whom he caught staring at him. Matching with his turquoise-coloured Lacoste polo shirt, his baby blue diaper bag was slung around one shoulder, swaying at his hip to the rhythm of his steps, which punctuated the constant rolling noise of the stroller he was pushing with a fascinated-looking Hinata in it.

Bokuto's bad-boy look was on-point today, hair styled in its usual spikes and ear piercings glinting in the sun. He was dressed in a simple combination of a figure-hugging t-shirt and a sleeveless black hoodie, on top of his skinny jeans, his tall sneakers loose as if to reflect his carefree attitude. Keiji trotted next to him with his hand in his dad's, but despite his sober expression that indicated that he was still as done as ever with his father's attitude, anybody looking into his eyes could tell how excited he was at the sight of the playground.

Next to him, Kuroo felt like he was on top of the world, although Kei, who was sitting on his shoulders with his tiny hands holding onto his head, probably felt even higher. Physically, at least. Kuroo flashed a grin at a pair of older women as he passed by, chuckling lowly when he saw them turn away and blush. Briefly letting go of his wide-eyed son's legs to readjust the sleeves of his soft red sweater, he shook his wrist to loosen the string bracelet (that Kei had made for him in daycare for Christmas) that was stuck too high, and then returned to holding the blond in place before he could voice a complaint.

Daichi's sunglasses were almost as black as his hair, his lips set into a tight line that gave him some sort of mysterious, untouchable look. Wearing a simple untucked orange button-down with rolled sleeves, he rocked the 'filthy casual' look, especially when he ran a hand through his short hair to ruffle it (as if the convenient wind wasn't doing enough of it already). The rhythm of his stroller, with Noya strapped in, was reminiscent of war drums, and they, reminiscent of the brave cavalry flanking the foot soldiers.

They were flawless and ethereal, and nothing in the world could ruin-

"DAD I HAVE TO DO A PEE-PEE."

"Noya, you just went at the daycare," Daichi groaned, and the illusion was broken. Suddenly, there was no more wind, no more swagger, no more imaginary background music, just four dads and their kids being looked at strangely by the other people in the park.

"Can I go play in the sand?" Keiji asked quietly, tugging on Bokuto's hand insistently, if not calmly.

"You're not gonna play with the other kids?" Bokuto pouted, but his son's face was set.

"I want to make sand castles."

"Mr. Dino, take me to the top of the mountain," Kei all but demanded, pointing at the highest point of the play module.

"You gotta be nice about it, or Mr. Dino won't wanna take you," Kuroo insisted, rocking his body a bit to shake his son into replying.

"Fine, fine!" the blond squawked, gripping Kuroo's hair hard enough to tear handfuls of it out. "Please take me to the top of the mountain, Mr. Dino."

"Grawwwrrrr, yes sir, Prince Tsukki!"

"Daddy, I wanna swing." Hinata wiggled impatiently in his seat, and Oikawa pushed his sunglasses up on his head to rub the bridge of his nose tiredly.

"Daddy wants to push you, but you forgot to say one thing," he prompted, squatting in front of the stroller to undo the buckle holding his son captive.

"Uhh..." Hinata thought out loud, putting his hand in his mouth. Oikawa pulled it out again gently, and waited for the answer. "Please?"

"That's right. If you say 'please push me on the swings, daddy', I'll be happy to do it."

"Please swing me, daddy," Shouyo giggled, eyes sparkling even brighter when Oikawa laughed at how cute his baby boy was, and pulled him out of the stroller.

"Of course. Why don't you go ahead and pick the swing you want and I'll be right there?" Oikawa suggested, watching his son squawk happily and then toddle towards the playground whilst he began folding his stroller.

"Oikawa, could you fold mine, too? I'm gonna take Noya to the bathroom," Daichi called to him from his side, and Oikawa nodded.

"I got it, I'll leave it by the bench there with mine," Oikawa pointed towards the park, and Daichi nodded back, promptly slinging a wiggling Noya over his shoulder and leaving.

He made quick work of the other man's (his support-group-mate's? His acquaintance's? His friend's?) stroller and took both of them to the bench, dropping his diaper bag there as well. Kuroo was not too far off, watching Tsukishima run around the module making dinosaur noises, so he trusted him to keep an eye on their belongings.

He walked past Bokuto, who was suggesting to Keiji to build a gigantic sand dragon, and snorted when he heard Keiji's soft 'there's not enough sand here, dad'. Then, he turned his eyes towards the swings to spot his son, and his footsteps suddenly picked up.

Hinata was standing under the swingset, crying softly. An adult was hunched over him, and suddenly, Oikawa saw red.

"Hey, you!" he called out, stomping over to the other man. "What do you think you're doing to my baby!?"

Except as he skidded to a stop, almost ready to whisk Hinata off his feet, he realized that the other man was just bending over to offer Hinata a tissue.

He also realized, as the man looked up, that the guy was _hot_.

"Huh?" the other guy raised a brow at him, straightening his back. "Are you this kid's dad?"

"Y-Yeah," Oikawa stuttered, suddenly finding his polo a bit too tight. "What did you do to him?"

"I didn't do anything," the man frowned, unimpressed. "Your kid was the one who began to cry when mine picked this swing before him."

And indeed, Oikawa looked to the side to find himself being glared at by a pair of sharp, dark blue eyes. And even though the tiny child in the swing was only twice as big as his head, somehow, Oikawa felt intimidated by him.

"Tch," he clicked his tongue, looking away from the black haired boy calmly sitting in the swing, and picked the hiccoughing Hinata up in his arms. "Yeah, okay, I'll give you that one. Shouyo gets very confrontational sometimes, especially when he's determined to fight for something he wants."

The orange-haired boy sniffled loudly, and Oikawa let out a squawk when he felt something gooey slide down the side of his neck.

"Here," the man offered again, to Oikawa this time, looking slightly amused as he held out the tissue to him. "I think you might want this."

"Urgh, gross," Oikawa mumbled, pulling Hinata away to clean the snot off his neck, and then clean his son's nose and teary cheeks. "Come on, baby, you know we don't cry when we want something. We ask nicely, and that's how we get it."

"Hnnn," Hinata nodded, turning his head to look at the other child, who'd been totally silent so far. "Y-You! Give me your swing! Please!"

The boy glared at Shouyo, and then turned his head to look straight ahead.

"No."

Oikawa's face pinched into a sour expression at the boy's rudeness, and he half considered giving the other man some parenting tips. Single dad or not, he sure as hell knew how to teach his kid some manners. And it didn't matter how hot -oh god, look at those arms, Oikawa wanted to cry- the other dad was, he wouldn't forgive him for making his child tear up again.

"It's fine, Shouyo," Oikawa huffed. "This swing is the same. Let's go on this one."

Thankfully, Hinata was as sunny as this nice spring Saturday morning, and he quickly changed his mind, eager to be pushed.

"My daddy's gonna push me higher than you," Shouyo stuck his tongue out playfully as the other boy, who didn't seem as amused as the orange-haired child.

"No he's not," he calmly replied, huffing indignantly. Oikawa wondered what this kid's deal was. However, by the subtle glances he sneaked as his (hunk of a) dad, he noted how the man had a soft smile on his lips, as if this was a regular occurrence.

"Daddy, higher!" Hinata giggled, and Oikawa obliged, if only to have the strangely childish satisfaction of beating the other kid in the swing.

"Push me harder please," the black-haired boy huffed, and the other man quietly complied.

"I'm higher!"

"No you're not, I am!"

"No look, I'm over you!"

"No, you're small, so I'm over you!"

"I'm not small! You're small!"

"You're small!"

"You're small!"

"I'll race you to the slide," the black-haired boy challenged, and Oikawa's eyebrows jumped as he muffled a laugh, almost immediately expecting his son's enthusiastic response.

"I'm gonna win!"

"Alright, alright, just be sure not to trip," Oikawa reminded his energetic little boy, making a move to get him out of the swing as the other man did the same to his son.

"Tobio, play nice," the man reminded his son -Tobio, egh. What an annoying kid- as he set him down and fixed his wind-ruffled hair.

The two boys nodded at their dads and then glared at each other for a second before they were off, little legs awkwardly carrying them towards the sandy area, where they had even more trouble keeping their balance, and each fell several times on their way to the slide.

Oikawa stayed back and chuckled softly at how cute his baby boy was, hugging himself and wondering when the light of his life had become so big.

"So hey," the other man suddenly began from next to him, and Oikawa turned his head to look at him as he extended his hand. "Sorry about earlier. I'm Iwaizumi. Iwaizumi Hajime."

And if Shouyo was the sun of Oikawa's life, Iwaizumi Hajime felt like a distant star in Oikawa's sky. So far away, mysterious and unknown, but bright enough to draw Oikawa even closer to him.

Oh, and _really fucking hot._

"I'm Oikawa. Oikawa Tooru," the brunet returned playfully, and when he took Iwaizumi's rough hand in his soft one, palm sliding against the tanned skin, he suddenly wondered if this is how Icarus felt when he was granted his wax wings.

...-...-...-...-...-...-...

"Ten bucks says they hook up."

"That's no fair, I wanted to place a bet on that side," Bokuto whined under his breath as he and Kuroo glanced sideways at Oikawa, who was now chatting animatedly with the sober-looking dark-haired man.

"Fine then. You wanna bet on the time it takes?" Kuroo smirked, folding his sunglasses and hooking them on his sweater.

"Hmm... two weeks," Bokuto estimated, pushing his sunglasses on top of his head.

"I'll give them... two weeks and a half," Kuroo hummed in thought. "Oikawa's super on top of his shit when it comes to Shouyo, so I think he'll take some time to think about a hook-up or relationship."

"You've seen the guy three times in the past week and a half, Kuroo. You don't know him that well. I think he'll be tapping it ASAP, since he's basically entirely into dudes. And yo, does that guy look good, or what?"

"Yeah, yeah, he does." Kuroo nodded as if they weren't very subtly checking another human being out, and then crossed his arms. "But Bokuto, I've known you for a week and a half and I already know how much of an idiot you are."

"Hey! Shut up, you're so mean!"

"Guys." Finally, it was another voice that interrupted their friendly banter, and the two turned their heads to see Daichi standing behind the bench they occupied, arms crossed and looking seriously cross.

"Yo, Daichi! What's up?" Kuroo asked a bit nervously, not ready to die just yet.

"This is a kids' playground. Can't you not talk about those things here?" he grunted, looking seriously intimidating with those sunglasses still over his eyes.

"Yo, sure thing!" Bokuto laughed just as nervously. "We were done anyway, right, Kuroo?"

"You're so right, Bokuto!" Kuroo added, turning around and grimacing amusedly at his friend, who snorted. Both of them squawked when Daichi suddenly grabbed their heads, as if warning them, and flailed to try and get loose. The laughter coming from them almost rivaled that of the children running in the park.

From over at the swing set, Oikawa glanced at his- oh fuck it, he'd just call them friends and be done with it- friends making fools of themselves, and blushed when he saw Iwaizumi's eyes go there, too.

"Friends of yours?" the dark-haired man asked, and Oikawa didn't dare meet his eyes.

"Haha, yeah, kinda? Not really, we're just, umm... in the same support group together from the daycare," he laughed a bit nervously, before realizing what he'd said.

Holy shit, he sounded like some kind of drug addict or child abuser, oh god.

"Huh," the man simply responded, even as Oikawa's heart and soul combusted. "I was actually looking for a daycare for Tobio. He's almost two years old now, so I think it's time."

"The one we're all at is great," Oikawa pimped, trying to play off the fact that he'd just had a mini heart-attack. And then, an idea popped into his head. "I don't really have anything on me right now, but if you want to gimme your contact info or something, I can send you some information."

"Hmm..."

Oikawa would seriously skin a man alive for this guy's number. And so he prayed.

"Nah, I think I'll go check it out in person. I like to get a visual on things. It's near here, I suppose?" Iwaizumi asked.

"Yeah." This felt like high school all over again, rejections included. "It's at the local community centre."

"Cool. I'll check it out," Iwaizumi nodded. "But... thanks."

"My pleasure!" Oikawa perked right back up, almost like a puppy wagging its tail, and had to remind his beating heart to be still already.

"Anyway. I've gotta go. It was, uhh... nice meeting you, I guess," the dark-haired man offered his hand again, and Oikawa gladly shook it.

"Ditto, Iwa-chan!" Be still, be still, be still, god, his heart had a heart of its own.

"Iwa-chan?" The man frowned, but left it at that. "Uhh... yeah. Bye."

"Bye," Oikawa waved until he was well out of hearing bounds, and then sighed dreamily. "Hmm, I hate seeing you leave, but I love watching you go..."

From over at the bench, the boys had no idea what Oikawa just said, but the look on his face was enough.

"Fine. I'll give him three weeks. Ten bucks."

"Daichi!"

...-...-...-...-...-...-...

**Week 2- Wednesday**

Kuroo liked to count the blessings in his life. Like how he had a happy and healthy son who loved him very much. Like how Kei wasn't a fussy eater, so even when the fridge was empty, he'd never complain. Like how Kei never complained about being babysat by Kenma more often than not on weekends, like how Kei would never complain about him picking him up from daycare late, like how Kei would do his best to dress himself and clean himself and play by himself when he knew that his dad was exhausted from work, like how Kei would just silently read Kuroo and try to make his life easier.

It didn't sit well with Kuroo, because it felt like Kei considered himself a burden on Kuroo, when in reality, the black-haired man would give up anything if it meant keeping his son happy. Children were supposed to be egocentric and energetic and wide-eyed and curious, and Kuroo felt like the more effort he made to provide for Kei, the more Kei shut himself out.

He hated it.

"Hey, champ," he smiled softly as he poked his head into his and Kei's shared room. The layout still looked weird to him, even after all this time, as all of Kuroo's drawers and closets were in there with Kei's bed and furniture, although he slept on the couch in the living room at night.

His son looked up, eyes wide and questioning behind his large glasses, momentarily stopping his play with the building blocks.

And then, he smiled wide.

"Dad, look, I made a tower!" he proclaimed proudly, and Kuroo couldn't help but grin, despite his face being numb as hell from a long day at work.

"It's pretty colourful. What's in there?" he asked, loving how the golden brown of his eyes seemed to gleam as he prepared his answer.

"Umm... the superheroes live in this part," he pointed to the tower. "And then there is a supermarket at the top, and a park at the bottom, and the daycare is here, and then we live here," he finished proudly, looking up.

Except Kuroo had not listened to a word he'd said, only to the enthusiasm in his voice. Sometimes, it was hard to believe how blessed he'd been with such an incredible child. It was also incredible how much his attitude changed when he was in the privacy of his home, versus public places. The innocence of this three year-old was absolutely endearing.

"Dad," Kei pouted, catching his attention again. "Did you even listen?"

"Yeah, of course I did," Kuroo quickly snapped out of it. "We live there, right?" he pointed vaguely at the tower, and Kei seemed to accept the answer.

"Yeah." And then, he stood up, putting the blocks in his hands down, and looked up to his dad with that painful innocence still glinting in his eyes. "Dad, are you okay?"

And Kuroo had told himself that he'd be able to do this. Only two more years, and Kei would go to kindergarten, and he'd drop a job, and he'd spend more time with his kid, and he'd be able to sleep through a full night without doubting his every decision. But when Kei looked at him like that, as if unsure, and when Kuroo saw the light in his eyes dim as he came to the realization that they weren't a normal family, the world felt like it was crashing down, and there was nothing he could do to postpone the end, much less prevent it.

"Yeah, of course I am." And he stretched the muscles of his face, practically tore them as he grinned widely and knelt, opening his arms. "You know, you seem a bit taller to me. Do you think you're stronger too? Cause I wanna know."

"Of course I am," the blond huffed, and his socked feet pitter-pattered on the hardwood as he ran to Kuroo, and threw his arms around his shoulders, squeezing.

"Ooh, you have gotten stronger," Kuroo chuckled, squeezing right back. "But I'm even stronger!"

"No you're not," Kei protested, squeezing until Kuroo could feel his arms trembling, and he put his chin on Kei's shoulder before letting his smile drop.

He was just so tired.

"Kei, y'know I love you, right?" he mumbled, realizing that the chewed up words may have been unclear to the boy only after he finished.

But Kei understood. He always did, the bright boy.

"I love you too, dad," he replied a bit more quietly

Kuroo squeezed tighter, just a little bit, just enough to feel the ache in his limbs and in his heart at the thought of losing someone so precious to him, and then, he was all smiles again and he pulled back.

"Now. About dinner. We're having leftover pasta tonight, but worry not! Daddy's gonna go grocery shopping tomorrow," he assured him, glad to see Kei nod.

"Am I coming, too?" he asked, and Kuroo nodded, knowing that his son had a strange fascination for supermarkets. Probably the wide array of colours and smells, as one of his child development 101 books had said.

If only he had a book on how to make his kid happy and carefree 101. But he didn't even think a book like that existed. He had to write it himself, even though he barely had time to even breathe these days.

"Allllllllright!" he exclaimed, suddenly attacking Kei's tummy with his fingers, and grinned when the blond squawked in surprise and fell to the ground, laughing. "Let's get going! That pasta won't reheat itself!"

"I'm gonna beat you to the kitchen," Kei grinned brightly, and then stood up, running past Kuroo and out the door.

The black-haired man watched him run, listening to the rhythmic sound of his tiny steps, and smiled sadly to himself, leaning against the door post to catch his breath.

...-...-...-...-...-...-...

Noya was almost swallowing his dinner at this point, and Daichi wasn't sure how to stop him. At least he seemed to be chewing, and wasn't throwing bits and pieces of food on the table this time.

"Hey, Yuu, any chance of you slowing down a little bit?" he asked, sighing hopelessly as he watched his son alternate between mashed potatoes and cut up carrots with gusto.

"I'm hungry," the black-haired child replied, words muffled by the half-chewed food in his mouth.

"Swallow before you talk, Yuu," Daichi reminded him, and his son nodded, swallowing before giving a satisfied sigh. "That food's not going anywhere, you know."

"I know! It doesn't have legs," Noya rationalized proudly, and then picked up a cherry tomato with his hand to eat it. "I want to go play, though!"

"I won't let you go play just because you finish faster. And use a spoon to pick up your food, please."

"Aww, why not?" the child whined. "I wanna play ball! Will you play ball with me? Or blocks? Let's build a castle!"

Daichi sometimes felt like he was talking to a wall, and he had no idea how to fix it.

"No, Noya. We won't be playing because you need to get ready for bed. I'll let you do something calm if you're nice, like read a book or something," he tried, already knowing what the answer would be even before it came.

"But books are boring! I want to build things," the child pouted, crossing his arms.

"It's not boring. You can learn a lot from books. If you promise to clean up without a fuss, I'll read you a bedtime story," Daichi offered as a term for truce, and was glad to see that his son considered it.

"Well..." The boy bit his lip pensively, as if the fate of the world rested upon this single decision. "Fine. But I want the one with the cowboys, please!"

"Whichever one you want," the black haired man chuckled, glad that his son was less fussy this evening than usual. "Now. Finish the beans on your plate and we'll go wash your hands.

"Hmm," the boy nodded and pushed the beans in tomato sauce into his spoon with his hand, shoving the huge bite into his mouth and using his dirty hand to keep all the food in.

"Yuu, that's disgusting. Don't eat your food with your hands," Daichi groaned, getting up and grabbing a towel paper to wipe the sauce off his grinning face and tiny hands.

Later on, at the bathroom sink, getting all of the tomato stains and pieces of food off of him was another challenge (and hell, his t-shirt would probably be stained for good), especially since he wiggled a lot, but just like his discipline, Daichi's grip on his son was firm. He helped his son brush his teeth ("but only a little, because I'm a big kid now!") and reminded him to try and use the toilet before leading him to his bedroom.

Yuu was in his pyjamas in no time, and left to pick a book from the bookshelf in his room. Daichi took that time to clean up a little bit around the kitchen, and make Noya's lunch for tomorrow. He was tired, but his son would be in bed in the next hour, and then he'd be able to have some time to relax (if Noya decided to go to sleep immediately tonight).

Busying himself with the dishes, he finished just in time to turn around and see Noya poke his head in through the kitchen doorway, a book in one hand and a blanket in the other. He looked kind of excited, which was nothing new, but that spark of giddiness in his eyes never failed to make Daichi's iron heart melt.

"So. Did you pick the cowboys?" he asked, drying his hands and going for his son.

"No, I want the one with a cake on it!" Noya exclaimed, showing Daichi a book titled 'Ellie Elephant's Marvelous Birthday Party'.

"That's true," Daichi noted, making a growling noise as he picked his son up, to the child's amusement. "It's your birthday soon. If daddy remembers well, you're going to be four years old in seventeen sleeps."

"Seventeen?" Noya frowned, trying to count under his breath. "How much is that?"

"You can count to twenty, Yuu, you're a smart boy," Daichi encouraged, setting him down on the couch and sitting down next to him. "Here, you can use my fingers, too."

"Okay. One, two, three, four..." Noya began, rushing through the first eight numbers by tapping on Daichi's fingers, and then slowing down as his memory struggled to catch up. However, Daichi kept silent, even when Noya got stuck at 11 ("one-teen!" "eleven, Noya") and looked up for answers. Eventually, the child made a gasp and continued until twenty, where he stopped proudly. "I counted to twenty!"

"Good job. See? It's less sleeps than you and me have fingers," Daichi laughed, and somehow, that seemed to be even more exciting to the child.

"It's gonna be a fun party. I want a cake like this," he exclaimed, shoving his book at his dad.

"We'll go look at the cakes together at the bakery and you can pick the one you want," his dad smiled indulgently, taking the book. "But now, before we start, we have to do one last thing..."

"What's that?" Noya feigned innocence, his guilty expression giving it away.

"Your puffers, Yuu. We always take your medication before the bedtime story." Daichi raised a knowing brow at him, not liking this any more than his kid did. "Go get your puffers from your room and I'll get ready to tell the story."

"Aww... Dad, I don't want to do the puffers," Yuu whined loudly, though as Daichi had learned to recognize Noya's different moods through his whines, he could tell that this was legitimately something distressing for the kid.

"I know, kiddo. But you have to. It's gonna help you breathe, you know that already," he sighed, trying to smile at his child despite the grief wrapping around his heart (and maybe just a little bit of anger, because his kid did not deserve this, his innocent baby boy had done nothing to deserve something like this).

"Fine," Noya sighed, jumping off the couch and running to his room. Daichi watched him go and rubbed what felt like premature wrinkles off of his face, back to looking happy as his son's tiny footsteps pitter-pattered towards him again.

The black-haired child laid his two inhalers, purple and blue, and holding chamber on his dad's lap and then climbed onto the couch, sitting next to him.

"Go ahead, like the nice nurses at the clinic keep showing you," Daichi encouraged, vigourously shaking the purple inhaler and setting it back down. He was glad to see his son nod quietly and pick up his purple inhaler and the holding chamber, connecting them like he was shown several times by the nurse at the clinic every time they were scheduled for a follow-up. Technically, he was supposed to prepare it for his son instead, but he wanted Yuu to develop some more independence already, hoping that it'd help him be a little bit more mature, and hopefully, know to do things right when he wasn't around to help.

He carefully watched the kid put the whole setup together, and then put the mask on his face, holding it in place.

"Ready?" Daichi asked, holding the inhaler. When Noya nodded, he sprayed the first puff, and watched the small flap on the holding chamber move to the rhythm of his son's breathing. He waited for about six breaths before pushing on the inhaler again, and counted six breaths before removing the mask.

"Can we read the story now?" Noya asked as soon as Daichi took the mask from him, undoing the setup.

"Almost. First, you have to remind me what your blue inhaler is for," Daichi prompted.

"I tell you before every bedtime, dad!" Noya pouted, crossing his arms.

"Daddy forgets a lot, and you're very smart, so I'm counting on you to remember for me," Daichi chuckled, ruffling his son's hair, resulting in a squawk.

"Okay, okay. The blue one is for if it ever gets really hard to breathe all of a sudden, and it makes it easier to breathe."

"Good. And what should you do with it?"

"Go to an adult with it and they'll help me use it," Noya recited as he did every single night, and Daichi was glad that for all his airhead qualities, his memory of very important things like this was still good.

He'd been diagnosed about half a year ago, and he'd done very well managing his asthma so far, even on his own. So well, that he'd only had two attacks after he'd been started on controller medication.

"Good, now I remember. Good job." Daichi put his hand out, and Noya grinned, high-fiving it with both of his hands.

"Okay, okay! Now the story!" he rushed, all this talk of asthma and inhalers and medication for a three year old going on four forgotten.

As per their usual, Daichi drew him close and bundled him in his favourite blanket, then threw his arm around his shoulder to hold the book between them. Noya leaned into his dad's side, eyes wide as he looked at the colours on the pages, and the occasional hum of contentment leaving his throat when Daichi made different voices for the different animals attending Ellie Elephant's birthday party.

There was food and music and streamers and balloons, and the humourous story definitely had Noya's attention from beginning to end, as he only made one comment throughout ("Why doesn't Sammy Squid have pants?" "Uhh... He has too many legs, so he doesn't need them?"). The ending was sweet, Ellie Elephant's best friend popping out of her giant cake to sing her happy birthday, and Noya sang along enthusiastically, giggling when Daichi closed the book.

"Another one!" he asked as soon as they were finished, and Daichi chuckled, ruffling his hair lovingly.

"Only one story a night, Yuu. Mr. Bun is already in bed and is missing you, so you should go and see him," Daichi suggested, putting the book down and picking Noya up against his hip when there was no struggle.

"Do you think Mr. Bun will want to hide in my cake and sing me happy birthday at my party?" Noya asked, always enthusiastic about his favourite bunny plushie. His feet swung excitedly as he hummed the birthday tune under his breath, and Daichi laughed as he carried him into his room, and into bed.

"Mr. Bun's a very quiet bunny, but I'm sure all of your friends will sing for you instead," Daichi assured him, glad that Noya accepted the answer, and made himself comfortable with his plushie in his arms.

"I'm gonna tell my friends at daycare tomorrow that I'm having a party!" he announced excitedly.

"It's still a little bit early. If you want, we can start thinking about what to do and who to invite next week," Daichi suggested.

"Next week? Is that far?" Noya asked, eyes round and bright in the light from the hallway.

"No, no. It's in four sleeps, if you don't count this one." Mondays were a pretty good day for Daichi as he finished work earlier than other days, so he'd pick up his son from the daycare and then start planning the party.

"Yey! I can't wait! I want cake, and balloons, and presents!" Noya wiggled giddily, giggling when Daichi bent down to kiss his forehead and readjust his blanket up to his shoulders.

"Oh yeah? And what present do you want the most?" Daichi asked with a smirk, bracing himself for the long list that was sure to follow.

But his son stopped for a second and put his finger to his lips in thought, and then hummed for five seconds, ten seconds, fifteen seconds... And then, he looked up at his dad, eyes as bright and as innocent as ever, and grinned widely.

"I want to not be sick anymore!"

And Daichi felt the world tumble out from underneath his feet just as breath escaped his lungs, and after a few seconds where the slight ringing in his ears dissipated, he realized that his hands were shaking.

"Oh, Yuu... Yuu, my sweet baby boy," he murmured, kneeling to be at eye-level with his son, and took one of his hands to rub the soft skin tenderly. However, Noya was looking at him with confusion, and at this point, Daichi was consoling himself more than anything else.

"Dad...?"

"I love you," Daichi breathed out, closing his eyes to press a kiss to Noya's smaller-than-average hand, convincing himself for just one second that things were just fine.

But they weren't, and his three year-old wanted to be healthy more than he wanted a toy truck or new Legos or a trip to the zoo. And if that wasn't heartbreaking, Daichi wasn't sure what was.

"Alright, we'll talk about this later," he conceded once he opened his eyes again and tucked Noya's hand under the blankets. "I'll take you to the toy store, maybe you'll see something you like."

"Can I have new cars? I want seven of them!" Noya gasped, always ready to be distracted, and Daichi chuckled, albeit a bit sadly, as he brushed hair out of his kid's face (they'd have to cut it soon, Noya was growing up so fast even when he wasn't growing at all).

"We'll see. Now go to sleep, alright? And have sweet dreams," Daichi wished him, stepping away from the bed.

"Nightie night, daddy!" Noya called to him from the bed, and Daichi almost forgot to turn on the night light by the door before leaving.

But when he did, the small lamp flickered into life, scattering a soft glow over Noya's room, and Daichi took a deep breath to remind himself that there would always be a light in the dark.

He just wished that the light didn't have to be so tiny.

...-...-...-...-...-...-...

**Week 2- Thursday**

Oikawa woke up even before Shouyo screamed loud enough to rattle his tired brain. At this point, it was a common occurrence to wake up in the middle of the night to a crying son, but the protective parental instinct inside of him had not dimmed, unlike the light outside.

Seriously, it was fucking two-thirty in the morning.

"I'm coming," Oikawa called out groggily, shuffling out of his room and into Hinata's. His kid was still in bed, wiggling under the covers, and the brunet approached with a yawn, stretching. "Shouyo? What's wrong?"

But the orange-haired child did not react, this time. Instead, a tiny whimper came from his lips, and Oikawa hurriedly turned on the lamp on his bedside table to get a better look at him.

Hinata was crying, eyes shut tightly, and was flailing, entangled in his blankets. And he was very visibly asleep, still.

Something was definitely wrong.

"Shouyo? Sweetie, wake up." All senses alert, Oikawa put down the protective bedrail he'd put halfway on the side of his child's bed and sat on the mattress, gently touching his son. "Shouyo, it's just a bad dream, wake up." But for him to behave like this, what could he be dreaming about?

Hinata whimpered again, and finally, when Oikawa worriedly wiped the tears off of his face, his eyes flew open, and he gasped.

"Shouyo?" Oikawa frowned, watching as his son's eyes refocused on him, and suddenly, his chest was heaving as he began to breathe faster and shallower than before. "Shouyo, baby, it's just me. It's okay. You have to calm down."

"Hnnn..." was the only noise that came out of the two year-old's mouth as he tried to articulate something, but was forced to concentrate on catching his breath instead. When he made a movement to throw off the blankets, Oikawa took him from under his arms and pulled him into his lap, draping his blanket over him and just holding him.

His hand went over the side of Shouyo's head, and he gently pushed him until his opposite ear was stuck to his chest.

He wasn't a mother, and he would never replace Shouyo's mom. He would never be able to comfort this child like his mother would've. However, he could do everything in his power to come as close as possible to doubling as both parents at once, and if holding Shouyo to his chest and letting him listen to the sound of his heartbeat would work, then he would do it anyday.

It seemed to have the desired effect as slowly, the small body in his arms stopped trembling and sniffling, and his heaving breaths calmed down. Oikawa kept him close for a little while longer, and then began to card his fingers through Hinata's soft lock.

Almost as soft as his mother's...

"Dad...?" the kid finally squeaked out, drawing Oikawa's attention to him. When he looked down, Hinata was looking up, and Oikawa made an effort to smile to look strong for his precious treasure.

"Heyo, sunshine. You have a nightmare?" he cooed, brushing hair out of his hair and then tightening the blanket bundle around his little body.

"Mhm," Hinata nodded, looking away, eyes red and puffy from crying.

"Do you wanna tell me what happened?" the brunet asked kindly, slightly surprised when Hinata shook his head.

"Nu-unh."

"I won't be mad, no matter what it is. Even if you tell me it was a nightmare about me stealing and eating your favourite snacks," Oikawa assured him, desperate to reach out, desperate to be of use to this tiny child, desperate to be a good parent since it's all he had left to do now.

"No," Hinata insisted, and shook his head against, setting his ear back down against Oikawa's chest.

"Then do you want me to hold you like this for a little while?" Oikawa suggested, relieved a bit when Hinata hesitated, and then nodded. His arms tightened a bit around the little bundle in his lap, and although Oikawa didn't know if this counted as spoiling, he wouldn't give up this moment of serenity for anything in the world.

He closed his eyes, and hummed a soothing melody under his breath, more out of instinct than anything else. His body began to rock, mostly by reflex, and when Oikawa felt the sway despite his closed eyelids, he let a small smile touch his lips, for even if he was conflicted, his body still responded instinctively to provide for his child.

"Daddy," Hinata finally squeaked out meekly, as if afraid. "Where's mommy...?"

Oh. Oh, so this was what this was about. In retrospect, it wasn't surprising. It'd been a while since Hinata had mentioned his mother, so it was due to happen at any time.

But in a violent nocturnal episode like this? Oikawa had never seen Hinata react so badly to the thought of his mother before.

"Mommy is..." he began, not knowing how to put it. Ever since she'd left, he hadn't known how to put anything. "Mommy left, Shouyo. Remember I told you about it some time ago? Mommy is gone, and she's not going to come back."

"Why?" Hinata was too tired to cry, but Oikawa could see his gorgeous eyes tearing up again. It made him want to cry, too. "Did she go on vacation?"

"No, baby. She's not on vacation," Oikawa mumbled, not sure how to keep pressing the issue. Hinata seemed to be hanging onto every word he said, and he didn't want to fuck up, even just once. "She left to go live somewhere else, so you get to live with your daddy."

By the way Hinata frowned, Oikawa half-expected him to say something like "but I don't wanna live with daddy!", but then again, he wanted to give his kid more credit than that.

"Mommy doesn't love daddy anymore?" he finally asked, sounding sadder than he'd ever sounded before, and Oikawa's heart broke.

It was his fault. It was all his fault.

"It's complicated..." he sighed. "Mommy and daddy decided that they didn't wanna be friends anymore."

"But..." Hinata whined, wiggling to move a bit and get a better look at his dad's sunken face. "Then... mommy doesn't love me anymore?"

And Oikawa wanted to say no. He wanted to deny that, and reassure his precious son that his mother loved him very very much, no matter what, which was what a regular parent would have done.

But Shouyo's mother had not been a regular parent, and Oikawa had read her so wrong in those many years in which they dated. He should have been more careful. If only he had done things differently.

It was all his fault that Shouyo cried and felt unloved and had nightmares. It was all his fault. He was the worst parent on this planet.

"Shou, remember that it's more important to count how many friends you have than how many you don't," he rasped out, throat tight with unshed tears. If anything, he had to be strong for his baby boy, who was being stronger than a 2 year-old would ever be expected to be. "All your friends at daycare love you. Your teachers love you. The kids at the park love you. And most importantly, I love you. So, so, so much."

That didn't seem to put Hinata's mind at ease completely, but the child nodded, and set his head back down against Oikawa's chest.

"Mommy didn't want me anymore?"

"Is that what your nightmare was about?" Oikawa probed gently, getting more and more drained with every second longer that this conversation lasted. His hands rubbed circles on his son's arms through the blanket, and he hoped he was being comforting, if anything.

"Mhm..." Hinata nodded mutely. "I had a dream that mommy yelled at me and left because she didn't want me. It was scary."

"Was I in it?" Oikawa asked gently, fearing the answer.

"Mhm." Hinata nodded, and then paused nervously, as if unsure.

"You can tell me anything, Shouyo. I promise I won't be mad," Oikawa kissed the top of his head comfortingly, hoping that his son didn't realize that his racing heartbeat was due to fear.

"Umm... You were there with us..." the kid began, putting his hand in his mouth nervously. Oikawa pulled it out before it got too slobbery and held the damp hand in his own regardless. "And... you standed there and didn't do anything, and let her leave."

"Shouyo..." Oikawa's throat was tight, almost too tight to speak, but he needed to say something. Anything to alleviate the burden on this tiny, fragile two year-old. Anything to steal the pain away from his precious son. "Shou... You know I'd never do that."

But he had. He had, and he was guilty, and he was guilty for making his child suffer like this and ask questions that no child should ask, and feel things that no child -nay, no human being- should ever feel. It was all his fault that Shouyo's mother had left. If only he'd kept his mouth shut, if only he'd endured... His happiness was nothing when weighed against that of his son's. If he had to cry every single day of his miserable life in order to keep the smile on Shouyo's face, then he would in a heartbeat.

But he hadn't. He'd failed as a parent, as the only remaining parent for this innocent, traumatized child, and he didn't know what to do to redeem himself anymore.

Suddenly there was a hand on his face, and Oikawa gasped in surprise when he felt the chubby fingers touch his eyes.

"Daddy, why are you crying?" Hinata asked innocently, looking worried. The expression didn't suit him at all.

"Nothing, baby. I'm just tired," he laughed it off.

"Do you miss mommy?" Shouyo persisted, settling back down into his arms again.

"... Do you?" he reflected the question, too scared to tell him the truth. He'd told the truth once, and that had broken his family irreparably. He didn't want to repeat the same mistake again.

"... Yes," the child mumbled after a while, hanging his head. "Do you think mommy will visit us soon?"

"We'll see," Oikawa replied just as unclearly as before. "Now come on. It's very late, and you need your sleep to grow up and be strong. Even though you already are strong." So, so, so strong, so unnecessarily strong, carrying the burdens that he'd been too weak to carry himself.

Hinata nodded, letting himself be placed back into bed without fighting it, seemingly too exhausted to move anymore. Oikawa tucked him in gently and kissed his forehead, turning off the light on the bedside table and only leaving the night-light to give him the soft outline of his son's chubby face in the dark.

"Well, good night, then," he began, stepping back to leave.

"Dad?" Hinata asked quietly before he could move away. "Can I ask you one thing?"

"Of course you can, sweetie."

"Are you... are you going to leave, too?" he breathed out, and even without seeing him, Oikawa could imagine the wide-eyed terror that must be etched on his face at the mere thought.

But if there was one thing he could do right, it was to make his promises sound convincing.

"All of the supervillains in the world would have to fight me before I even thought of leaving you, baby. No, I'm here to stay." Oikawa's eyes welled up with tears as his heart welled up with emotion again. "It's just you and me, but we're going to be fine. I promise."

"Okay. Nightie night."

"Nightie night, Shouyo."

And he was almost out the door when his son spoke up again, weakly and unsurely, but it was there, and Oikawa hadn't imagined it, and somehow, he didn't break down into tears on the spot.

"I love you, daddy..."

"I love you, too, my sunshine. Forever and always."

On his way to his own room, Oikawa began to cry, softly, the kind of crying that caused a clench in his chest and that squeezed the breath out of his lungs. Sitting down on the side of his bed, he hung his head into his hands, and let the tears silently trickle between his fingers until he was just too tired to sit up anymore.

When he'd gotten married, he'd sworn to protect his family no matter what. When his wife had become pregnant, he'd promised that he'd protect their child no matter what. When his ex had left them in a flurry of rage and insults spit out like venom that Hinata would not come to understand until his teenage years, he'd promised that he'd protect his son.

And yet, here he was. Laying down in bed, tears leaking passively down the sides of his face, trying not to let the guilt of having ruined his precious son's happiness consume him whole. Guilty or not, Shouyo still needed him, and still didn't blame him, and so he still had a chance to make up for his sins.

He'd never redeem himself. He'd never be able to erase the pain that Shouyo felt. However, he would definitely do his best to make things better from now on. Even if he'd never be able to atone for the fact that he'd made the light of his life feel unloved and abandoned.

He somehow fell into a fitful sleep, hating himself for daring to be happy at his son's expense, and hating himself for hurting his son on such a profound level.

He'd done Shouyo such wrong...

However, shortly after he fell back asleep, he woke right back up to a pair of hands shaking his arm gently.

The guilt still poisoning his exhausted brain, he turned his eyes to the small figure standing at the side of his bed with a blanket in one hand, and the other one in his mouth.

"Shouyo...?" he asked sleepily, wanting to cry all over again. Shouyo probably had had another nightmare, another reminder of how badly he'd fucked up-

"I think I made a pee-pee," the child suddenly announced, words all chewed up around his hand. "I feel wet."

But oh, everything was not lost. And Oikawa hadn't fucked everything up.

Shouyo was the light of Oikawa's life, almost literally. When everything seemed pitch black, he always stepped in to remind the brunet that not all was bad in the world.

"That's great," Oikawa breathed, immediately sitting up, and cracking a wide, proud smile. "Oh, oh wow... That's really seriously great!"

"Because I made a pee-pee?" Hinata asked, genuinely confused as to why his dad looked so happy.

"No, no," Oikawa laughed softly, swinging his legs off the bed and ruffling Hinata's messy hair. "Because you told me you needed a change. That's very good! You have to keep telling me as soon as you get dirty, okay? Oh, and if you feel the pee-pee coming, tell me before doing it so we can try to go to the bathroom! Soon, you'll be able to use the toilet like a big boy!"

"Daddy, you're talking too fast," Hinata complained with a loud yawn, rubbing his eyes with his slobbery hand.

"I'm happy," Oikawa grinned brightly, going over to his desk and grabbing a new diaper. "You've made me really, really happy." Not to mention relieved. Hinata was finally showing the first signs of readiness to potty-train, and that had definitely been Oikawa's biggest concern so far. Excluding the abandonment issues Hinata seemed to have, but he hadn't evaluated the extent of those until the nightmare happened.

Step by step, they were making it through their challenges.

"Okay, let's go get you changed," Oikawa held out his free hand to Hinata, who looked up and grinned before slipping his tiny one into his dad's grip.

The orange-haired boy toddled right beside his father's confident gait as the two of them headed for the bathroom, looking ready to overcome every single challenge in their way at that very moment.

Nevermind the fact that it was 4AM.

Needless to say, Hinata had a very nice nap at the daycare the next day. As for Oikawa, well... he was just glad that his office at work had a door with a lock, and a very very soft carpet.

...-...-...-...-...-...-...

Nothing seemed to be working on Bokuto's end. And Bokuto rarely let the circumstances get him down (he'd had much worse) but this morning just wasn't working out for him.

First, his alarm didn't ring, and he woke up thirty minutes late, to the sound of his cellphone's ringtone. Which would have been a saving grace, if the person calling him so early wasn't his boss to announce that a pipe had burst at the garage overnight, and that they had to close for the day. Which really wasn't that bad, except for the fact that he'd been relying on his next pay to take care of their rent.

And if all of that wasn't bad enough, he found out the hard way that he didn't have enough instant coffee left to make anything passable. So, grumpier than he should've been, he'd thrown away the watery beverage and had gone to see how his son was doing with his morning routine.

Now, Keiji was pretty independent with waking up. Usually, he heard Bokuto's alarm through the thin walls separating their rooms, and got out of bed on his own to go use the bathroom, until Bokuto came back to help him dress. And all of this was unusually mature of a four year-old, but Bokuto did not know what to expect with the silent child anymore, so he just let him be.

So obviously, when he came into the room to find Keiji sitting in bed (or more like curled up against the wall with his blanket pulled up to his face), he had to stop and analyze the situation. Even more so when his son glanced at him and froze, eyes wide.

"What's going on, kiddo? Why aren't you up yet?" Bokuto asked, ignoring the fact that he'd been the one who'd made a mistake that morning. "We're already late, so let's do this quickly this morning."

"Sorry, dad," Keiji mumbled, slowly getting out of bed and hesitantly pulling his blanket down with him.

"Hey, what's with the blanket?" the white-haired man asked, genuinely confused. His son had gotten over dragging his blanket around a while ago, and for some reason, had never gotten attached to another toy instead.

"Nothing," Keiji hurriedly answered, averting his eyes. Bokuto made a move to step closer to him, and frowned deeply when his son took a step back, putting a hand out. "Stay there, dad! I'm coming!"

"Now you're just acting weird," Bokuto commented, stepping forward anyway, and kneeling to be at eye-level with his kid. "What happened?"

"N-Nothing," Keiji mumbled, and Bokuto watched as his grip on the blanket tightened enough to make his knuckles go white. But he didn't understand why his son was so nervous this morning.

Gently, he put a hand on his hand, and then brushed some hair out of his flushed face.

"Hey, come on... Don't lie to me. What happened?"

The black-haired boy made a noncommittal noise, fidgeting slightly, and still not saying anything.

And finally, after a few seconds of silence, Bokuto's nose picked up what his kid did not admit.

"Did you wet your bed?" he asked understandingly, knowing that he wasn't supposed to make Keiji feel embarrassed, but not knowing how to approach the situation either. Keiji had been potty-trained at a very reasonable age, and only had had a few accidents, even fewer since they finally transitioned out of the nighttime diapers. So this development was unexpected, to say the least.

"Mhm..." Keiji hung his head in shame, hesitating a bit before letting his blanket drop to expose his stained pyjama pants.

"Hey, come on, it's okay," Bokuto pinched his nose, grinning to make him more comfortable. "It happens. Why were you trying to hide it?"

"No reason..." Keiji mumbled, obviously uncomfortable now, and that's when Bokuto decided not to push it.

"Alright, alright. Just please don't lie to me, okay? I just want to help you."

"I'm sorry..." the child mumbled, and Bokuto stood up, ruffling his hair playfully.

"It's okay. Let's go change your clothes, okay?"

"Mhm..."

They made quick work of Keiji's new clothes, and once the child was groomed and ready to go to daycare (at least a day off meant that Bokuto didn't have to rush to take him early), Bokuto sat him at the table with a peanut butter and jelly sandwich and his favourite cup filled with milk, and left him to eat while he changed the bedsheets.

Which was odd, he realized as he entered the room again (and now that he was aware of it, it definitely smelled faintly of piss), because usually, kids peed their beds in the middle of the night, not when they woke up in the morning.

He made quick work of the fitted sheet, throwing it to the ground, but then when he came to the plastic cover underneath (which he'd left there mostly out of forgetfulness than actual use, but hey, it came in handy in unexpected moments like these), he noticed something odd.

There was no puddle on the plastic, for some reason. And Bokuto could not figure out why. Perhaps there had only been a small amount? Not enough to saturate through the fitted sheet? Although that sheet was rather light, so he didn't really understand how that could've happened.

And then, a weird thought popped in his head, and he knelt to undo the rolled-up fitted sheet he'd thrown to the ground.

As he'd expected, the stain on it looked mostly dry, now that he observed it carefully. Which meant that the accident had happened a while back, probably even hours ago. But then why hadn't Keiji come to wake him up? He couldn't have slept through a bedwetting episode, not since his pyjamas were so soaked. He must've been uncomfortable as hell.

Deciding not to leave it up to debate, he grabbed the fitted sheet and stalked right back to the kitchen, throwing the sheet into the laundry basket in the hallway on the way there.

Keiji was still eating, as quiet as ever, and even his chewing seemed noiseless.

"Hey kiddo," Bokuto called out, approaching him, and frowning at how Keiji flinched at the sudden sound of his voice. "I have a question about what happened."

"Yeah?" Keiji asked, not sounding too sure.

"I know the accident happened a while ago. Like, it the middle of the night. Why didn't you come and get me?" Bokuto asked gently, sitting down to be at eye-level with his nervous-looking son.

"I forgot," he mumbled dismissively, taking a bite out of his half-eaten sandwich to avoid talking.

"No you didn't. Your pants were all wet, you couldn't have not felt it." Bokuto crossed his arms and pouted. "What did we say about lying, Keiji?"

"I'm sorry." The dark-haired boy looked up at his father, as if not knowing what else to do. "I won't lie again, I promise."

"It's fine..." Bokuto sighed, relaxing his posture a little bit. "I just wish you'd gotten me earlier. It's not fun to sleep in a wet bed. And it's okay for accidents to happen, so you didn't have to be embarrassed to tell me, if that's how you felt."

"I didn't want to bother you..." Keiji muttered, hiding his face in his plastic cup as he drank his milk.

"What?" Bokuto stopped short in surprise. "No. No, no, no. There's no way you'd bother me."

Had his son always been this far away from him? Or had the distance between them just gotten even larger without him noticing?

"Keiji..." Bokuto continued, but his son didn't turn to face him. "Come on, look at me." Grabbing his son's chair, he rotated it to face him, drawing a surprise squawk out of his child.

"I'm sorry," Keiji mumbled again, looking slightly pathetic with those wide eyes and jelly smudged on the corner of his mouth.

"There is nothing to apologize for. You did nothing wrong." Bokuto was just confused at this point, and maybe just a bit frustrated at not being able to understand what was going on in the dark-haired boy's head. "I just want you to remember that nothing you do ever bothers me. If you do something bad, I'm going to tell you it was bad, but otherwise, you don't ever have to be afraid of bothering me. Never."

"Okay..." the boy nodded after some hesitation.

"So no more hiding things from me, okay?"

"Okay."

"Good. I'm proud of you." Ruffling Keiji's already-messy hair, Bokuto kissed his forehead, and then stood up, pushing the chair back into place. "Now come on, finish that last bite of your sandwich so we can wash your hands and go to daycare."

"Okay," Keiji replied as quietly as ever, and Bokuto wondered, as he watched him almost disappear into the decor, why his son seemed so afraid to just exist.

However, although it was unusual, it was not unwelcome to have Keiji hold his hand throughout the entire subway ride to the daycare, never once letting go, even when they got to the community centre. Although it was slightly confusing when Keiji refused to let him go even there, even when Kenma invited him to go inside the gym and play with the other kids. When Bokuto made a move to untangle their fingers, Keiji scrambled to keep a hold on him, despite averting his eyes.

"What's up, champ?" Bokuto frowned, squatting to his son's height. "You've been acting weird all morning. Why don't you want to go play with the others? Or just... play in general?" Which would probably be what ended up happening, knowing Keiji.

"Can I stay with you today?" the dark-haired boy mumbled, not daring meet Bokuto's surprised gaze.

"Uhh..." He wanted to, but breaking their routine like this would do Keiji no good in adjusting to his new life. He had to put his parental duties over his personal satisfaction. "Nah, you know you have to stay at daycare. And besides, all your friends will be sad if you don't go!"

"You'll come back and get me, right?" Keiji asked softly, as if afraid of the answer, and Bokuto just couldn't resist drawing him into a hug.

Nevermind the fact that apprehension was slowly rising inside of him, his brain working hard to figure out what had his son so spooked all of a sudden.

"Of course I will. I love you too much to let anybody else keep you," he joked, trying to keep the trembles out of his voice. Pulling back, he looked into his son's eyes, and grinned brightly. "Now come on. Go have fun today."

"Okay..." That seemed to be Keiji's go-to answer, but at least he parted from Bokuto to go and crawl into one of the wooden modules against the wall.

Bokuto sighed and watched him go, only getting up to sign the attendance sheet by Kenma's side once Keiji was gone from his view.

The nursing student took his eyes away from the running children for a second to look at Bokuto, and nodded silently at him as he made a move to leave.

However, he stopped before he even took a step and turned back to Kenma, biting his lip.

"Heyo, Kenma. Can I ask you a favour?"

"If it's reasonable," Kenma answered coolly.

"I just want you to take a look at Keiji's behaviour today. He was acting weird this morning, so I wanna know if anything else happens."

"Weird in what sense?" Kenma asked, suddenly interested a little bit more. He turned to face Bokuto fully, and though his eyes seemed dull, his posture indicated that he was listening.

"Well... it kinda reminded me of the first few weeks he came to daycare. The separation anxiety period? I feel like he's kinda floating between that and wanting to have nothing to do with me. It's really weird," he explained, not really sure how to verbalize the uncomfortable feeling in his gut.

"I'll keep an eye on him. Returning to separation anxiety is an indicator of regression, which might point to some stress going on in his life," Kenma suggested, probably spit right back out from one of his textbooks on pediatric nursing.

"Thanks. I can't think of any stresses on him, though... I guess I'll have to keep my eye out, just in case," Bokuto sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose tiredly. His morning definitely sucked. "Anyway. Thanks for looking out for him."

"Not at all," Kenma nodded, still as expressionless as ever. "Have a nice day."

"Ditto."

Throwing one last look out at the gymnasium where all the kids, minus his own, were playing enthusiastically, he let out a weary sigh and left to figure out what to do with his life.

...-...-...-...-...-...-...

Daichi arrived first to the support group meeting, discussing birthday party ideas with Suga until Oikawa came in with his usual Starbucks in hand, looking as tired as ever, but giddy, as if he was eager to talk.

Bokuto came in next, looking kind of irritated, despite being as energetic as usual. Thankfully, when Suga asked him if anything was wrong, he didn't have to explain himself immediately, as Kuroo burst into the meeting room, panting.

"Sorry I'm late. Hope you didn't miss me," he grinned, the black circles under his eyes as deep as ever, but his grin also as bright as ever.

There was something uplifting about being in the same room as one another once again. So when Suga gathered up his papers and suggested that they start, the four friends glanced at one another eagerly, and shared in the happiness they found in co-existing with the reliable, damaged, but hopeful individuals accompanying them throughout this major chapter of their hectic lives.

* * *

**Author's Note**

**Ups and downs for all of our daddies. Also, enter Iwaizumi (and Kageyama), so Oikawa's mood isn't the only thing going up rn hahahHAHAHAHA ok. **

**I gave you plenty of hints about Oikawa and Bokuto this chapter, and you guys are pretty sharp, so I'm sure you can figure out some stuff about both. Bokuto's full story is in chapter 3. Oh, and Nishi's birthday is canonly in October, but they're in spring now, so like any good fic, I'm casually gonna disregard the canon. **

**And little note about Tsukki: the way I'm gonna write him is that around people he's comfortable with, he's super cute and pleasant (like canon kid!Tsukki), but in public, he's kind of withdrawn (like teen!Tsukki). Also, at that age, children are supposed to be egocentric, aka they aren't really aware of people around them. So for Tsukki to read cues from Kuroo and to respond to them with something as complex as worry is highly unusual, and worrisome, since it's a deviation from regular toddler behaviour. **

**And another note about Hinata: children showing interest in what is going on in their diaper and/or showing interest in what their parents are doing when they go to the bathroom (which can get quite awkward!) are considered appropriate candidates to begin potty-training. Hinata's a bit late, but he's doing okay 8D**

**Yeah, that's all the notes for this chapter, which was fairly straightforward. I just wanted to establish some more background on how the fathers and their children behave with one another, since from now on, the story's largely going to be concentrated on group dynamics. Chapter 3 is almost done being written, so its posting date gonna depend on how much progress I make on my cosplays. It might be Thursday, if I get a lead on them, or Saturday, if I slack off as usual (and if I have reliable internet access in Boston). **

**Thank you so much for your enthusiastic response to this fic! I really hope you keep enjoying it, and please review if you have anything at all to say, suggestions, comments, criticism and the whole lot!**


	3. Week 3

**Author's Note**

**Quick note for CML readers: Sorry for the lack of updates, I'll try and post a new chapter next week! So sorry! ;u;**

**Guys, I'll be at Anime Boston again this year! Hit me up! I'll be as Nishinoya on Friday, Pirate!Rin (Free!) on Saturday and Cain (Starfighter) on Sunday. I'd love to meet up and say hi 8D**

**Addressing some concerns from last chapter's comments/reviews. Kageyama is Iwaizumi's kid for the sole purpose of giving Oikawa a jealous rivalry with a 2 year-old because this boy is fucking ridiculous and would totally do something like that. That, and IwaOi+kid!KageHina, amirite? Also, Kenma is a student nurse doing his pediatrics internship at the daycare. His and Kuroo's story will be better explained next chapter. **

**So. Week 3. This chapter is not an easy one. There are warnings below, read them if you feel like it, but otherwise, they'll kind of ruin what happens in the story, so jump over the next paragraph. However, the writing is pretty heavy, and it is a sensitive topic, and I really tried to approach it in a HUMAN way. Which means that the characters will deal imperfectly with it. But I really hope that as an author, I did well in handling the topic as it should be. **

**Warnings are as follow, read if you think you need a heads up. So this chapters contains mentions of child abuse, domestic violence, prostitution and past implied rape. The warnings cut off here and I'm just gonna write a bit of blank space so that people who didn't wanna read the warnings don't accidentally catch their eye on any words they might've wanted to avoid. **

**Alrighty, here we go. I'll tell you to "enjoy", as usual, but most of all, I would like you guys to think a little bit about what happens in this chapter, on top of feeling emotions :'D**

* * *

**Week 2- Saturday **

"And then this kid has the guts to tell me that he wasn't the one who ate the cookie I'd been saving up since that morning, and looks up at me with these huge, innocent eyes and cookie crumbs all over his cheeks."

A round of chuckles went through the four of them as Kuroo finished his story, the latter glancing towards the spot in the living room where all the kids were playing. The cookie thief in question was playing side by side with Keiji, the two building a tower together and occasionally saying something to one another. On the opposite spectrum, Noya was energetically waving around some superhero figurines and narrating some story or another to Hinata, who was waddling around to try and catch up to Noya when he moved around.

They were precious, they really were. With the mid-morning light filtering in through the window and caressing their porcelain baby faces as they played, their fathers gathered in the kitchen for a cup of coffee couldn't help but find the whole scene kind of ethereal.

"I've got a similar story," Daichi began, gathering their attention away from their children. "But I mean, with Noya, it's kind of obvious that there would be something like that."

"I wanna hear it," Bokuto hummed excitedly, shooting down his (third) coffee. Oikawa wondered if the bitter substance was what made up 90% of his personality (and was the cause of his ridiculously spiked hair).

"Well, this once, I put Noya to bed and went to the living room to watch a movie before bed. I must have fallen asleep because I remember seeing the credits next, and I just clean up a bit and decide to head to bed. But lo and behold, and I pass by Noya's room..."

"Lemme guess. He was up and about?" Kuroo chuckled.

"Worse than that," Daichi groaned, throwing his over-excited son a fond side-glance. "I hear noise, so I knock and go in, just in time to see him disappear under his blankets. So I'm like 'okay, so he was up after bedtime', but then I see this gigantic Lego construction on the floor by his bed and it just clicks that he's been up for over an hour and a half, building a castle or a house or something."

"That does sound like something he'd do," Oikawa chuckled.

"But that's not the worst bit," Daichi recalled fondly. "When I call him out on it, I practically ask him why the hell there is a castle almost as tall as he is on the ground next to his bed, and he literally turns around and tells me that the castle built itself up while he was sleeping."

"Oh my god, this kid."

"Which would have been even remotely passable of an excuse, if he wasn't holding a Lego block in either hand when he sat up to speak."

They all dissolved into laughter at the story's conclusion, somehow the picture painted by Daichi seeming completely believable. Kids sure were a handful.

"Hmm, I'll tell you guys something funny Keiji did -I know, surprising, right?- at some point, but on the way to the centre. It's already 9AM, and Sugawara will be waiting for us at 10," Bokuto prompted them, putting his mug in the sink.

"Good idea," Daichi approved, seemingly always ready to see the silver-haired student. When Oikawa had told Bokuto and Kuroo about his bet, they'd both laughed for some reason, and had agreed to join in, giving Daichi respectively two weeks and a half and four weeks ("because he has a stick up his ass, I swear").

Of course, Bokuto and Kuroo had not told Oikawa that they'd bet on him and the gorgeous example of natural selection that they'd seen him fawn over at the park last weekend. It would only be that much more fun when the time came to reveal the shady business.

"Alright. Yuu!" Daichi called, having to repeat a couple of times to get his son's attention.

"Wait, dad! This is the part where Batman destroys the alien spaceship!" Noya protested, Hinata cooing as he flew the spaceship toy around the air.

"Spaceship aliens!"

"Yuu, we have to go see Kenma, so it's time to clean up," Daichi informed him, and the black-haired child's face dropped.

"Aww..."

"Come on, don't you wanna see Kenma?" Daichi crossed his arms, eyebrows raised.

"Well... yeah, but..."

"You can keep playing at the daycare, okay? And you'll have more friends there, so more people can play with you."

"Okay!"

"Good. Now show your friends where to put the toys once they're cleaned up," his father reminded him, grinning when Noya ran to the quieter ones by the couch to bug them.

"Tsukki! Aka! It's cleanup time," he grinned. "You should do like a monster and step all over your tower to break it."

"Like a dinosaur," Kei gasped, getting up. Keiji said nothing and just scooted a bit to the side as Kei made tiny roaring noises and stomped his feet a few times. "Dad, look, I'm a ty- tyra-" he struggled with the word a few times, drawing a chuckle out of Kuroo, who drained his coffee while watching his kid make a fool of himself. "Tyrasaur! I'm a tyrasaur!" Tsukki finally decided, making growling noises and then stomping his way into their lovingly-built Lego tower, effectively knocking it down to the sound of Hinata's and Noya's excited cheering.

"That's my favourite tyrannosaurus," Kuroo called out, putting his mug in the sink by the others'. "Now good tyrannosauruses clean up after they finish playing, so help Keiji clean up, okay?"

"Mhm," Kei nodded, and dropped back on his butt as he and Keiji began undoing the Lego pieces and throwing them into their plastic bin.

"Shouyo, sweetie, why don't you help Noya pick up the toys you guys left all around the living room?" Oikawa suggested, not wanting his son to sit out on cleanup duty.

"And then I'll show you where to put them in my room," Yuu decided proudly, stacking his figurines in their appropriate container with Hinata's help.

"Yo, it was a great idea to have breakfast together before the session today," Bokuto grinned as they cleaned the kitchen a bit, leaving their dishes by the sink. "Thanks for having us over, Daichi."

"Yeah, thanks. You cook a mean omelette, if anything," Kuroo smirked.

"Thanks. It's Noya's favourite breakfast food, so if I don't nail it, he won't eat it," Daichi laughed, soaking the stack of plates to dislodge the pieces of food on them.

"I kinda feel bad for getting you hooked up with the dishes, though," Bokuto winced. "Next time, I'll have you guys over at my place to redeem myself."

"No worries, I'll do them when I come home after the session."

"Are we still up to take the kids to the park today?" Oikawa asked, trying to sound casual by inspecting his nails.

However, he wasn't meeting any of their eyes, and the three others had to muffle their laughter at his obvious behaviour.

"Sure, I guess," Kuroo shrugged. "Though I'm starting work an hour early today, so I was intending to have Kenma watch Kei a bit longer before taking him home."

"Well if you want, we'll take Kei to the park with us, and then take him back to the daycare to stay with Kenma," Daichi suggested, drying his hands on a towel. "It'd be better for him to get out a bit, too."

"You'd do that?" Kuroo asked, genuinely surprised.

"You don't have to look so overwhelmed, man," Bokuto grinned, throwing his arm around Kuroo's shoulder and dragging him down for a noogie. "Just running favours for a friend!"

"Ow, ow, Bokuto, stop that!" Kuroo protested, huffing when he was let go of. "Geez..." Rubbing the pain out of his sensitive scalp, he looked at them gratefully nonetheless. "Thanks, though. I'll take you up on that. I haven't really had time to take him out since last weekend, so other than what they do at the daycare, he hasn't gotten much fresh air."

"You need a break," Oikawa huffed. "Or some deep skin moisturizing action, because you are going to grow wrinkles at the tender age of 22 at this rate."

"Not all of us can be picture-perfect, pretty boy," Kuroo rolled his eyes amusedly, ignoring Oikawa's huffed 'at least I try!'. "Anyway. I think the kids are done cleaning up, so we should bounce."

"Yup, let's do it!" Bokuto nodded, just as the kids came out of Noya's room, the owner of which was chattering loudly.

Upon seeing his father, Hinata picked up his pace and waddled up to him, tugging on his pant leg.

"Dad, I think I have to do a pee-pee," he announced very loudly, making all of the adults snicker.

"Alright, good! Let's go to the bathroom," Oikawa grinned, taking his son's hand to lead him away.

"Dad," Hinata called again a second later. "I don't have to do a pee-pee anymore."

"Oh boy," Oikawa groaned, to the sound of laughter from behind him. "Alright, well, go to the bathroom. I'll grab a diaper and come to change you, okay?"

"Mhm," the bubbly child nodded and waddled away.

"Okay, kids! It's time to go, so let's get your coats on," Daichi prompted them forward with a wave of his hand, towards the entrance, and the dads each took care of dressing their child. By the time they were all dressed, Oikawa returned with Hinata in tow, and made quick work of dressing him.

"We're gonna go see Kenma?" Kei asked softly once they left, and Kuroo nodded.

"Yup. And you're going to spend the day with Kenma because daddy's working early today."

"Oh. Okay," Kei nodded, not seeming phased, although he dropped the subject.

"But these three are going to take you to the park after you play with Kenma a little bit, and then they'll take you back to Kenma," Kuroo explained, squeezing the blonde's hand a bit tighter. "And I'll be home in time for dinner, so we can have whatever you want."

"Potatoes," Kei decided quickly, looking up. "Can Kenma stay for dinner?"

"Of course," his dad nodded, watching out for him as he descended the stairs (the only one of the four not having trouble being Keiji).

"Sounds like you're gonna have a busy day, Kei," Bokuto grinned at him as they all reached the bottom of the staircase and headed for the exit of the apartment building. "You're going to have lots of fun with us, we promise."

"Hear that? You're gonna have a nice day and play a lot," Kuroo repeated just for emphasis, slightly sad that he wasn't a part of that day, but knowing that he needed to work all of his hours today if he wanted to pay his rent. "What do you say?"

"Thank you uncle Bokuto, uncle Oikawa, uncle Sawamura," Kei recited out loud, as if he was reading out of a book rather than coming up with stuff, but the astonished expression on all four adults' face was priceless.

"Single dad first, and now an uncle to three other kids," Oikawa chuckled, picking up Hinata to carry him. "We're leveling up so quickly."

"I know. We should celebrate!" Bokuto decided giddily. "Let's go out for coffee."

"I know a great place not far from the daycare. They're pretty kid-friendly, so we can go sometime," Daichi suggested.

"I'm either at work or commuting every day between 7AM and 6PM, except Saturdays, 1PM to 8PM," Kuroo winced. "That's gonna be pretty tough on my end."

"Drop one of your jobs," Oikawa huffed in a whisper that was mostly meant for himself.

"I'd love to," Kuroo rolled his eyes. "But anyway. Unless you guys are up for dinner sometime, or coffee after the session on next Saturday, I'm gonna have to bail out."

"No such thing, amigo," Bokuto huffed, flicking his arm. "It's the four of us, or nothing at all. We're all in this together."

"There's a song like that in High School Musical, dad!" Noya exclaimed out of the blue, continuing on to sing the song until Daichi hushed him with a sheepish grin.

"Well, we'll figure something out. We have up until now, haven't we?" he smiled at them once Noya was under control, and they all looked at one another as if to confirm before smiling back.

Yeah, life definitely felt like it was running its course smoothly.

(For now. After all, the odds were still stacked against them).

...-...-...-...-...-...-...

**Week 3- Monday**

Work had been extremely busy that day, and Bokuto's arms were shaking from having carried so many auto parts to and from the mechanics at the garage that day. Thankfully, his boss had taken pity on him (it might've been after he almost dropped a car battery on his foot) and had stuck him at the reception for the second half of the day, but it had still been tedious, and Bokuto was just eager to go to sleep.

"Keiji, do you want dessert?" he asked, taking their dirty dinner plates from the table to take them from the kitchen.

"Yeah... Can I have a kiwi?" the kid answered in a low voice.

"Hmm... We don't have kiwis anymore, but do you want to try a grapefruit with sugar sprinkled on it?" Bokuto looked over to his son at the table, grinning when he saw his dark eyes light up at the thought of sugar.

"Yeah."

"Okay, lemme prepare that real quick." Bokuto picked out a grapefruit from the fridge and cut it in quarters, sprinkling a teaspoon of sugar on each quarter before taking it to his son, waiting impatiently at the table. "Alright. Now grapefruits are kind of like lemons, so it might sting a bit when you eat them."

"Okay," Keiji nodded, only waiting for his father's nod to grab one and bring it to his lips.

Bokuto could not help but laugh loudly at the scrunched up face he made, grabbing a quarter himself to mimic the expression. Keiji seemed to observe him and find some amusement in watching him grimace, and then dug into his quarter in all of his quiet happiness.

Bokuto finished his quarters quickly and then just sat back to watch his son eat, occasionally making small noises or rigid jerks in reaction to the acid fruit. And at the sight of his small fingers dripping with juice, the pieces of pulp and sugar caught on his cheeks, the tiny smack of his lips as he chewed, the scrunch of his nose as he grimaced against the acidity and the satiated smile on his face as he finished his piece, Bokuto's heart melted.

He wasn't the best father by far. Hell, he was probably one of the worst parents on this planet. However, there would never be a day when he would ever regret having this child and protecting this precious little human that he had not the obligation, but the privilege to raise.

"You can have the other piece, too," Bokuto offered, flicking the last quarter at his son, just for the pleasure of seeing his eyes light up, his tongue flick over his lips, and his chubby fingers reach out to take the fruit.

Bokuto loved him. Bokuto loved him so much, sometimes it hurt to imagine living without him.

He'd done a piss-poor job at parenting before, but this was a new start for both of them, and he wasn't going to fuck it up this time.

He silently listened to the little slurps and whines coming from his son, his four year-old baby boy, and finally, when Keiji put the piece back on the plate, he leaned over and pressed a kiss to (the miraculously clean part of) his cheek.

"Dad..." Keiji whined softly, reddening under the attention, and Bokuto just laughed, getting up.

"I'm just gonna do the dishes, okay? Go wash your hands, use the bathroom, and change into your pyjamas please, and I'll be there as soon as I'm done," Bokuto instructed him, pulling the chair back to let him hop off of it with ease.

"Okay," Keiji nodded, heading down the hall of the 3 1/2 apartment.

Bokuto busied himself with the dishes, letting the sound of running water wind him down after his long day. Occasionally, he heard Keiji's footsteps on the hardwood, but true to his quiet nature, the child seemed to want to disappear, and conducted his bedtime routine very meekly.

It was just another night.

Bokuto finished the dishes and was putting the leftovers in Tupperwares when the front door lock jingled.

And his very first thought, after his heart skipped a beat, was 'what the fuck'.

Because nobody had the key to this apartment. Nobody but him, and-

The front door swung open, and immediately, Bokuto was on high alert at the sound of high-pitched giggling. He left the kitchen in a brisk walk and turned in the main hall to face the front door, and instead of an empty entrance, he came face to face with someone he'd never thought (see: that he'd never hoped) to see again.

"Holy shit." The person who spoke was a woman, about his age, although her layers upon layers of makeup and skimpy dressing style gave her years beyond her age. Her eyes were wide in genuine shock. "I didn't even think you'd still be living here."

"It's not in my nature to run away, y'know," Bokuto answered bitterly, crossing his arms.

"Fuck." The woman ran a hand through her long ginger hair, sighing loudly. "Fuck, this sucks."

"What sucks?" a new voice joined their conversation, and Bokuto may or may not have forgotten to breathe for a second when a giant hulking mass of a man stepped in behind her, swinging his hand possessively around her hip. "Babe, I thought you said your place was cool. Who's he?"

"Nobody important," the woman growled, her piercing glare sending the message very clearly to Bokuto. "Just my ex."

"Okay, first of all, fuck you," Bokuto interrupted them before the two could continue. "We were never together. Second of all, fuck you. Get out of my house. Third of all, fuck you. How dare you show your face around here again after all you did?" Later on, he'd come to realize that at that point in time, things had gotten out of hand faster than Menthos in a 2L of Coke. But at that moment, the frustration inside of him just could not be quelled.

"Okay, then how about fuck you right back?" the woman bristled, baring her teeth in an ugly sneer. "You don't know anything about me, so you don't have the right to judge me."

"I know that you mistreated MY son, and then you dumped him on me and walked out on us. So y'know what? I don't even need to know the rest of your bullshit alibis. Get out of here," Bokuto bared his teeth right back, heart rate accelerating the more he thought about what happened.

"Seriously? Shit, look at you playing martyr!" the woman yelled. "What the fuck, Bokuto? I need to make a living, too, like you need to make a living to take care of the brat. So you can cry all you want, but I've got shit to pay, and I can't do it with Keiji-"

"Don't you dare say his name!" Bokuto interrupted her aggressively, and she stepped back at the aura of hostility practically radiating off of him. "You lost that privilege the moment you decided not to be a mother to him. So leave! I never want to see you near either of us again!"

"Okay, listen, you're being an ass about this," she groaned, crossing her arms. "I need this apartment tonight if I want to get paid, so like it or not, I'm staying here. So do what you want, stay, or leave, your choice. Just take the brat with you, whatever you decide to do." And then, she waved at something behind Bokuto.

The man blanched, already knowing to expect the worst, but hoping, praying that he was wrong and that he was just imagining the worst.

He wasn't.

When he turned around, Keiji shrunk back around the corner, just his tiny hands and wide, terrified and _hurt _eyes poking out from around the corner.

Bokuto could seriously feel himself falling apart at the seams.

"Keiji, go to your room," he immediately ordered, his voice leaving no room for negotiation. He didn't want his baby to live through this again. He never wanted his precious son tohave to go through something like this again. He had to get him out- now.

"B-But-" The child stammered out, voice meek and scared, but Bokuto interrupted him.

"Keiji! To your room!" Stress was rising up and accumulating inside of him, the tenseness of his body making his limbs and head hurt fiercely. However, through the pounding in his head, he still realized that he'd let himself get too hot-headed, and his regrets bloomed just a second too late as he watched Keiji take a shuddering breath and then run away quicker than Bokuto had ever seen him run before.

"Wow. Is that how you've been with him all this time? Maybe I should've stayed after all," the woman whistled mockingly, and Bokuto saw red.

Taking quick steps forward, he made a move to raise his fist at her.

But he couldn't. He wasn't like her. He wouldn't take his anger out on another human being.

He wanted to cry.

"You're disgusting," he finally settled for saying. "Chlamydia was the least of the disgusting things about you."

"Whoa, babe, I thought you were clean," the man at her side rumbled on, as if only just figuring things out.

"I am!" the woman insisted quickly. "I got tested recently, I'm guaranteed clean."

"Good." The man grunted and then turned to Bokuto. "Alright, get the fuck out. I'm not paying her to talk to you, and you're taking up my time and money. Leave, and take your little shit with you."

"Do as he says, Bokuto." And suddenly, the redhead sounded quieter, just a bit more sober, and a lot more tired. "It's gonna be so much easier. Just leave, stay somewhere overnight. Come back tomorrow."

"N-No." Bokuto's throat was so dry is hurt. There was a ball lodged somewhere in there, preventing him from swallowing and compressing his airways so his chest clenched when he tried to breathe. "You can't just waltz back in here and ask things like that. It's not your right."

"I don't care what anybody's rights are!" The man finally exploded, grabbing a fistful of Bokuto's shirt, and pulling him forward.

Good thing he'd used the bathroom not long ago or else he might've peed his pants already.

"You take your fucking brat and get the fuck out! Simple as that!"

And Bokuto did not want to give in, but his hands were shaking, and his heart was about to jump out of his throat, and he was on the verge of tears. But he couldn't cry, not when he had to stay strong for both him and his son. His beautiful, precious, darling son.

He had to protect Keiji no matter what. No matter what it did to him. It had always been that way between them. Just the two of them against the world (or Bokuto against the world, shielding his son from it as he fought on).

Silently, he turned his eyes to his ex, to Keiji's biological mother, and begged her for help.

She turned her eyes away, looking slightly guilty, and Bokuto squeezed his shut, feeling desperation run in his veins alongside the terror and create an explosive mix that made him feel like he was about to fall into a thousand tiny pieces.

"You have five minutes," the burly man finished, shoving Bokuto away. The white-haired man stumbled slightly, still not daring to breathe even after putting a few feet of distance between them, and his jaw hurt from clenching his teeth so hard.

"You heard him," the redhead repeated, back to her usual emotionless state. "Five minutes."

Bokuto knew he had to be strong for Keiji. But sometimes, being strong meant recognizing his limits and thinking before he acted.

Turning tail, he sprinted towards Keiji's room.

The room was dark, and silent, and Bokuto was momentarily struck by the terrifying thought that Keiji had run in the other direction or had run into another room.

"Keiji?" he called out, voice shaking almost as badly as his hands. He wondered if his face was as white as his hair.

Nobody answered him, and panic gripped his heart.

"Keiji? Where are you?" he called again, immediately throwing the nearest closet door open and finding nothing. He repeated the action with the other closet, and when it came up blank, he truly began to panic. "Keiji, sweetheart, please answer if you're here. Please, where are you?"

He held his breath and listened to his heartbeat in his ears. And then, on the side, he heard a small sniffle.

Suddenly, his ears cleared up, and his throat relaxed a bit, and he swallowed thickly as he ran to the bed, and knelt.

Keiji was curled up under the bed against the wall, arms wound tightly around his favourite owl plush toy. He was terrifyingly silent and still, and Bokuto's heart broke at the thought of a child having learned to keep quiet so seamlessly.

"Keiji?" he called, flinching violently when his son let out a noise that was a cross between a strangled cry and a loud whimper, curling up tighter over himself. "Keiji, sweetie, it's daddy. I'm not gonna hurt you. Please come out."

"I'm sorry," the child cried out, and now that he was talking, Bokuto could clearly hear the sobs in his voice. "I'm sorry, I don't mean to be bad, I'm sorry!"

"Baby, you did nothing wrong. I'm sorry for being loud," Bokuto felt his own eyes tear up. Every apology or self-derogatory comment coming from his four year-old hit him like a punch to the gut and made him nauseous. "I didn't mean to yell. I promise I'm not angry, and you did not do anything wrong."

"I'm scared," the child sobbed out, still refusing to look at his dad. "I'm sorry I'm bad, I'm scared!"

"Please." It was now Bokuto's turn to try incredibly hard to keep his tears at bay, and like father like son, he was unable to hold them back as they finally rolled down his cheeks. "Please don't say that. You haven't done a single wrong thing in your life, Keiji. I'm the one who's sorry." His heart clenched at the thought of all the wrongs he'd done to his son.

And though he'd planned to apologize fully at some point, when both of them would be in the right spirits to hear one another out, this impromptu confession under the bed would have to do.

"I'm the one who is so sorry for not knowing I was your daddy until you were 3 years old. I'm sorry for always fighting with mommy. I'm sorry for not doing anything when mommy hit you. I'm sorry for scaring you. I'm sorry for crying a lot when mommy left. I'm sorry I wasn't a better daddy."

The more he spoke, the more he realized how much of a terrible parent he'd been for his precious child. He'd sworn to redeem himself, but was there really anything he could do at this point to take back the pain he'd caused his son?

"I am so sorry," he sniffled out one last time, drying his eyes as the sound of voices from the living room reminded him acutely of the time running out. "But you need to trust me one last time, okay? I love you. I love you so, so much. Akaashi Keiji, you are everything to me, and I will do everything to protect you." And he was mostly talking to himself, and he knew it, but somehow, it seemed to help his confidence. He put out a hand, reaching as far back under the tight space as he could. "Please come to daddy. I'm going to take you away so that nobody can hurt you again, okay? I promise."

Keiji finally looked up at the proffered hand, and then his teary gaze went to Bokuto's face. He immediately averted his eyes and then looked back at the hand, as if still debating.

"Do you..." Finally, his croaky voice rang out in the silence pervading the room. "...Do you pinky swear?"

"I pinky swear," Bokuto laughed despite the circumstances, biting his lip to avoid lapsing into another round of tears again. "I swear on all of the sugared grapefruits in the world, cross my heart and hope to die."

"Okay..." Slowly, hesitantly, Keiji relaxed, and it felt like forever until he began to wiggle forward, and then got close enough to gently slide his tiny hand in Bokuto's. "I want to leave, daddy. I'm scared."

"I know, baby, I know," Bokuto let out a shaky breath he didn't remember holding in the first place, and gently pulled his son out from under the bed, and into his arms. "It's all gonna be okay, I promise."

Keiji nodded silently against his shoulder, and Bokuto indulged in the moment for a few seconds longer before getting up and grabbing the blanket off of Keiji's bed. The child, still clinging onto his owl plushie worriedly, watched him bring it towards him, and then wrap it around his shoulders.

"Let's go," Bokuto whispered out, and lifted Keiji in his arms, adjusting the blanket so that is covered him from head to toe. Keiji gripped his shirt under the blanket, and Bokuto anchored himself to reality through the resilient strength in those tiny fists of his.

He didn't grab anything else, too busy making a beeline for the front door. He pulled his son closer to his chest as they passed by the living room, trying to ignore the lewd noises coming from it, and barely even pulled his sneakers on correctly before he was out of the door.

Once out, it finally felt like they could breathe again, but he only allowed himself a moment's respite before he was off again, out of the apartment building. The chill of the spring night was nothing compared to the chill in his bones, so Bokuto let the adrenaline in his system run its course as he headed down to the nearest subway station.

Briefly palpating his pant pockets, he clicked his tongue when he realized that he'd taken nothing with him, and so had no means of contact or transportation. In retrospect, spending an extra minute grabbing his cellphone or wallet would've been logical, but when Keiji sniffled from underneath the blanket in his arms, he realized that no- he would not have stopped for anything in the world trying to get his son out of that apartment.

Thankfully, his college days had taught him much in urban survival, so even with Keiji in his arms, he jumped the subway turnstiles easily, and tried to make himself as inconspicuous as possible with a bundled child in his arms. He got some bizarre looks, but nobody asked him any questions, which he was grateful for.

Now, he had to figure out where to go. He didn't have his phone to call anybody, and didn't have his wallet to rent a hotel room, so he'd have to rely on his memory, and lots of luck.

He knew where Daichi lived, as they'd been there over the weekend, but it was pretty far from them, so somewhere closer would be preferable. As the adrenaline wore off, he, too, became incredibly exhausted, and his limbs trembled as he tried to keep Keiji up in his arms. Other than that... he surprisingly still didn't know where Kuroo lived... But he did know where Oikawa lived. In theory. He didn't remember an address or street name, but he knew which subway station he had to get off at, and remembered Oikawa bragging about the steps leading up to his flat being painted white and teal. There couldn't be that many houses with white and teal steps, right?

Keiji sniffled softly and sneezed shyly, and Bokuto knew that he had no other choice. He crossed his fingers, and went down to take the incoming northbound train.

...-...-...-...-...-...-...

Oikawa was dozing off while reading his book (Childhood Developmental Psychology. He'd beat Kuroo at his super-daddy game for sure) on the couch, and yawned, briefly considering calling it a night. Hinata had been put to sleep not long ago so it would be alright to go to bed, although 9:30PM was still a bit early as a bedtime for him.

He figured he could use the extra sleep, though. Putting his bookmark in his book and setting it down on the glass table, he stood up and stretched, yawning loudly.

He was about to head to his room when suddenly, there was a knock at his front door.

The sound was quiet and brief, and Oikawa briefly wondered if he'd hallucinated it. He wasn't expecting anybody, so he figured he was probably more tired than he'd initially thought.

But then, the knock was there again, a bit more frantic, and Oikawa knew it wasn't a hallucination.

Suspicious, he walked over to the front door, and looked through the eyehole. And of all the things he could think of at this time of the night, a nervous-looking Bokuto with a bundled Keiji in his arms was not one of them.

He opened the door quickly, and gaped at them in shock.

"Heyo, pretty boy," Bokuto laughed, though it sounded hollow and exhausted and not at all like him. "Sorry to bother you. I hope you weren't sleeping."

"N-No. Not yet," Oikawa managed to say, looking at Bokuto up and down to notice the loose t-shirt, the sweatpants, and the untied sneakers, as well as the sleeping child wrapped in a blanket in his arms.

"Oh. Okay, good." And then, Bokuto stopped and looked to the side in shame. "Umm, say... I know it's asking for a lot, but-"

"Come in," Oikawa immediately interrupted, finally over the shock of seeing his friend show up at his front door like this.

"Really?" Bokuto swallowed thickly, but stepped in hurriedly to let Oikawa close and lock the door behind him while he kicked off his shoes. "Thanks, man, I really owe you one."

"What happened, Bokuto?" Oikawa asked immediately, trying to figure things out on his own but not being able to draw any conclusions. But Bokuto's hair was less-than-perfectly-spiked, and that was probably the first sign that things were not well. "You're a mess."

"Thanks." Bokuto did that terrifyingly empty laugh thing again, and Oikawa shivered. "Umm... stuff happened at home. Do you... do you think we can stay here a while?"

"Of course," the brunet nodded, at a loss of what else to do. "Go sit on the couch. Aren't you cold?"

"A little bit, now that you mention it," Bokuto laughed nervously. "Keiji is actually pretty heavy on the long run, so my arms are numb."

"I'll make you some tea," Oikawa offered, not knowing what else to do. "Do you, uhh... need me to call the police or something?"

"No, no. No police," Bokuto quickly assured him, sighing as he dropped down on the couch, and hesitated a bit before drawing his legs up until he was practically cocooning his sleeping son. Laying down on his side and putting his head on the armrest, he put his nose in Keiji's soft dark hair and breathed to remind himself that they'd be okay.

"Are you sure?"

"Just... Just like this is fine..." Bokuto mumbled, tightening his grip on Keiji, and then ceasing all movement.

And then, the sound of water boiling in the boiler was the only thing breaking the silence, and Oikawa was too confused to do anything else.

But he didn't have to be alone in trying to figure things out. He didn't exist as a single human being because strength came in numbers. He was only as strong as being surrounded by his friends made him.

He'd picked up his phone and had pressed on speed dial 6 before he even knew it. The receiver picked up on the second ring.

"Yo, pretty boy. Miss me already?" the cocky voice on the other end was very familiar, though Oikawa was not in the mood at the moment.

"Kuroo, Bokuto just showed up with Keiji and he's not looking good. You and him act like best friends most of the time, so don't you know lots about him? What should I do?" he cut straight to the chase, glancing sideways at the immobile figure curled up on the couch.

"I know as much about him as you do," Kuroo corrected him lazily, though his voice was suddenly sharper. "But I'll be there in forty-five minutes to try and figure it out."

"What?" Oikawa frowned. "No, no, it's okay, don't bother Kei with transportation this late at night. Just help me out."

"I am helping you out," Kuroo insisted, and there was the sound of shuffling cloth in the background. "I'll be there in forty-five. Call Daichi in the meantime."

"Him, too?" the brunet glanced at Bokuto, though, and knew that they'd need all the help they could get. "The poor guy probably just got Noya to go to sleep..."

"Call him. We need him. He's like, the only one of us who actually knows how to be empathetic," Kuroo chuckled.

"Oi, I'm plenty empathetic, I'll have you know," Oikawa hissed, slightly offended.

"Of course you are." He could practically hear Kuroo rolling his eyes on the other end. "Forty-five. Call Daichi."

And he hung up, just like that.

"Wow, rude much?" Oikawa huffed, glaring at his phone screen for a moment as if it had done him great wrong, but then speed dialed number 7.

(So it had ended up being useful to put the guys on speed dial, after all...)

"Hello?" Daichi answered on the third ring, sounding extremely tired, and Oikawa felt guilty for disturbing him. However, before he had a chance to reply, Daichi groaned on the other line. "Noya, I told you to go to sleep already!"

"But I want a drink of water," a whiny voice came from the background, and Oikawa pressed his lips together to try not to smile.

"You had one five minutes ago, you're gonna wet your bed if you drink more." Groaning again, Daichi finally turned back to his phone. "Sorry, what were you saying?"

"Bokuto showed up at my place with Keiji, and something's really wrong with him. I dunno what, though. I called Kuroo, he's heading in, and when he asked me to call you, he probably meant it like he wanted you here, too. Think you can make it?" Oikawa explained in a single breath.

"Well, at least Noya won't be a problem to transport," Daichi grumbled, sighing. "I'll come over if you think you need me. I hope it's nothing too bad."

"Same," the brunet bit his lip, looking at Bokuto, who still hadn't moved. Heck, he hardly even looked like he was breathing. "Yo, Daichi, what do I do? He's curled up on the couch with Keiji and he hasn't moved since he got here. Like, I'm not even sure he's alive."

"Are they hurt?"

"Doesn't look like it. Just pretty shaken, I think," Oikawa reported, remembering how pale and nervous Bokuto had looked at the front door.

"Okay... I know this is gonna sound weird, but separate them. If Keiji stays asleep, take him to another room. Bokuto probably needs to relax without having to look after him for a bit," Daichi advised. "I'll get Noya ready and head over immediately. Make him comfortable until I get there."

"How much time is that?" Oikawa asked, nervous to be left alone with Bokuto for too long.

"A bit less than an hour. Subway shouldn't be too crowded at this time of the night."

"I'm sorry for making you come this far at this time of the night," the brunet apologized sincerely. "You didn't have to."

"Yes, I did," Daichi answered without hesitating, with the confidence and strength of a thousand-man army. "You guys are my friends. This is what we do for one another. This is why we decided to stick together, past the obligatory support group sessions. So stop being apologetic, and take care of our friend until we get there."

"I will."

"Good."

And the line clicked off.

Sighing, Oikawa slipped his phone into his pocket, and took a deep breath before returning to the living room, where Bokuto was playing dead.

"Yo, Bokuto," he called as he approached. "I spoke to Kuroo and Daichi. They're on their way here right now, they'll be here in less than an hour."

"Cool," Bokuto replied half-heartedly.

"Okay." Here came the hard part. "Umm, so Daichi told me that it'd be better for you and Keiji to be separated for now cause you need to relax without worrying about him. Do you mind if I take him?"

"Oikawa... I don't think I ever want to let him go again," Bokuto answered, choked up. His eyes looked red in the darkness.

"You're not letting him go, though," the brunet noted, knowing that he was treading on thin ice. "You're recognizing your limits, and recognizing that unless you relax, there's no way you'll be able to take care of your kid the way he should be taken care of."

"I'm already a horrible parent. Nothing's gonna change."

"No. Stuff if gonna change. Just... give yourself a chance," Oikawa sighed, kneeling next to the couch, and putting his hands where Bokuto was gripping Keiji tightly. "Listen. I don't know what happened. None of us do, and we're counting on you to tell us so we can help. But I can genuinely assure you that I know how it feels to feel like you're undeserving of your child after doing him wrong. And lemme tell you, there's no way you'll be able to take care of Keiji if you don't take care of yourself first."

"... Where's he going?" Bokuto asked in a raspy voice, grip loosening hesitantly on his son. Oikawa immediately took the reigns, pulling the bundle away from Bokuto, who just laid there limply, looking up at him.

"I'll put him on my bed. He'll be perfectly safe," Oikawa assured him, securing Keiji in his arms.

"Okay..."

"I'll be right back." Heading into his room, Oikawa gently laid the kid on a pillow, and wrapped him up in his blanket before leaving. He poked his head into Hinata's room on the way back, just to make sure that his own child was still sleeping soundly, and then returned to the living room.

Bokuto was back to being curled up on the couch, hiding his face into his arm.

"Here," Oikawa offered, pulling a wool blanket out of the cabinet under the TV and dropping it over Bokuto. The man reacted a few seconds late, pulling on it and mumbling a brief thanks. Not expecting any more reaction from him, Oikawa returned to the kitchen and busied himself making a mug of tea.

He set it down on the table, close to Bokuto's face, but Bokuto just silently stared at it before sighing deeply, and closing his eyes. The brunet figured he may as well leave him to rest; his body language spoke volumes, and he was sure that Bokuto's story would not be an easy one to tell, or listen to.

...-...-...-...-...-...-...

When Bokuto woke next, it was to the sound of silent whispering. He blinked and glanced around him, spotting nobody in the darkness, and sat up to try and look for whoever was speaking. The tea on the table had long gone cold, although Bokuto had been lulled to sleep by the aroma of matcha, so he appreciated the gesture.

"Oikawa?" he called softly, looking towards the hallway. Soon, the brunet poked his head in, and grinned upon seeing him.

"You're awake," he sighed, heading over to the lamp to turn it on. As he did so, Kuroo and Daichi strode in from the kitchen, a mug of steaming tea in their hands, and came to stand next to Bokuto.

"How are you feeling?" Kuroo asked first, trying to read Bokuto's body language. However, the white-haired man was seemingly done with trying to hide it, and groaned, slumping over with his head in his hands.

"Like absolute shit. I think... I think I not only traumatized my kid tonight, but I also figured out a lot of ugly things I wish I'd never found out."

"What happened?" Daichi asked softly, setting his mug down and the sitting on the floor. Oikawa joined him, whilst Kuroo opted to sit on the couch, next to Bokuto.

"That's a really vague question. I'm not sure how to answer that right, because so many things happened in so little time... I don't know, man," Bokuto sighed, leaning back limply and staring at the ceiling. "I think I fucked up. Not just tonight, but ever since the day I became a father. Even before that."

"Well, then, maybe you wanna elaborate on that? You never did tell us anything about yourself or your past," Oikawa suggested.

"It's not pretty at all. When I say I'm a terrible parent, I mean it."

"Well, you didn't beat your kid, did you?" Kuroo huffed as a joke, but Bokuto's silence was the most terrifying answer that could have been given to a question like that.

It left a speck of uneasiness in all of their hearts.

"Start from the beginning. We'll get to the bottom of this," Daichi encouraged, although none of them seemed sure they wanted to anymore.

"Do you... do you promise that no matter what I say, it won't change the way you see me?" the white-haired man asked softly, as if afraid.

"Well, it is going to depend," Kuroo crossed his arms. "If you say you're a homicidal maniac, it's gonna be a bit hard not to judge you."

"Kuroo, you idiot," Bokuto chuckled weakly, and then sighed. "Okay, well... here I go."

The three of them kept quiet, as if indicating for him to go on, and Bokuto took a deep breath to stabilize his nerves before jumping right into his story.

"So in college, I was pretty much a frat boy. Dark days, I know." He chuckled self-deprecatingly. "I was the ace of the college volleyball team, and popularity got to my young and stupid head. So I'd do the typical frat boy thing, dress like a douche and attend parties and stuff like that. The only thing I was kind of uncomfortable doing was hooking up, so I think over the first few months, I became like... this holy icon of chastity and/or anal retention because I turned down anybody who asked for a quick fuck. So what I think happened was kind of a campus-wide contest of who would sleep with Bokuto Koutarou first, and it went on for a few months."

"And then..." Kuroo trailed off, his hands tightening over themselves, and the other two could definitely feel the tension almost palpable in the air.

"Well... Let's just say that a party went haywire, and somebody won the contest," Bokuto chuckled a bit uncomfortably, scratching the back of his neck as if the mere memory of that time irritated him physically. "I don't remember what happened, or how it happened, but the next day there were pictures on Facebook, so I know that it did happen, and that this one girl won the infamous 'Bokuto challenge'."

"Shit, man." Kuroo clicked his tongue, eyes a fraction wider than usual indicating that he was genuinely shocked by his friend's story. "That's horrible."

"It happens all the time in college, right?" Bokuto winced. "Usually it's the other way around, but... whatever, I guess I had no right to complain, especially since I couldn't even remember what happened, so I just let it be."

"But Bokuto, you... You didn't..." Daichi started, unsure how to approach the topic, but Bokuto cut him off with a wave of his hand.

"I just let it be," he repeated, just to hammer the point home, and they all uncomfortably dropped the subject. "And I just went on with life. Though the reputation followed me around so I just decided I wasn't gonna deal with that bullshit anymore and dropped out before finishing my degree and got a job. Never got around to returning to school."

That seemed to be the least distressing bit of the story (if not the most uncomfortable to talk about, judging by his body language), so when he leaned back against the couch and sighed, rubbing premature weariness out of his face, the others knew to expect the worst.

"About a year ago, the girl pops right back up at my parents' house and just casually tells me she has a kid and that it's mine. And she says she can't support him anymore, so she wants me to move in with her and babysit her- our kid. I tried to refuse, obviously, but she threatened to accuse me of rape, and I wasn't sure at the time if she could actually do that, so I said yes," he shrugged, as if way past the point of caring. "So I end up in a 3 1/2 with a girl who gave me one nasty chlamydia and a tiny human that looks nothing like me, and I'm expected to play house. She literally disappeared for days on end as soon as I moved in, so I think that's what she was waiting for."

"And how was Keiji at that point?" Oikawa asked, heart squeezing in his chest at the apprehension of hearing the rest.

"Well, I lost him inside the house for 3 whole hours on the first day, if that gives you a clue. I looked everywhere, but he'd literally disappeared. When I found him, he didn't want to talk to me, or come near me, and I dunno why I did what I did but I just gave up on him for a while. I'd just ignore him and he'd ignore me, and we kind of just lived in the same house, but not together. I helped him with stuff he couldn't do, obviously, but it stopped at that. And he never spoke to me even once. That lasted for about a week, until at some point, his mom came home in a really terrible mood and like... it was so casual, the way she called him over and he just stood there when she... when she hit him."

"Christ," Daichi took in a sharp breath, hiding his face in his hands just enough to compose himself. Next to him, Oikawa looked like all the blood had drained from his face, and Kuroo's face was shadowed and grim at the revelation.

"And it really shocked me," Bokuto kept going, the tightness in his throat more and more apparent as the subject became more and more distressing. "Because what the fuck, right? First of all, you shouldn't be hitting your kid for any reason. Second of all, you shouldn't be hitting your kid because you're in a pissy mood. Third of all, and worst of all, your kid shouldn't look like he knows what to expect, and doesn't even cry when you're done with him. It looked so wrong, and I just-" His breath hitched. "-I just realized that the kid wasn't socially inept, just terrified out of his fucking wits all the time."

"Oh my god." Oikawa let out a strangled noise of distress, and it was so genuine and so heartbroken that just for a second, the thought that the story hit too close to home crossed all of their minds. However, instead of letting one problem stack on top of the other, Oikawa knew that it wasn't the time to get too emotional, and composed himself quickly, although the horror never left his wide-eyed expression. "The poor baby... I can't imagine what he must've been though."

"Yeah, me neither. I couldn't imagine it, so I confronted her, and my emotions got the best of me, and we were really loud and violent in our fight, so I think it just scared him more. I couldn't find him in his room that night, so I wasn't sure where to look and just let it be." He stopped for a second, trying to get his bearings together again before continuing. "The next morning, I wake up and his mother's gone, and after looking up and down the house for him, I find him under his bed, eating a banana and looking like he just stole the declaration of independence or something. So I somehow manage to coax him out from under there, and when he does, I see that his arm is bleeding and I freak out, because hitting your kid is one thing, and cutting your kid is another, right?"

"Why would she do something like that?" Kuroo hissed, frown deeply etched onto his face. "It's hard to picture someone being that frustrated with their life."

"I don't know what her fucking issue was, and I still don't know what it is. I think she needs professional help, but hell if she didn't scream my ears off every single time I told her she did." Bokuto ran a hand through his hair in frustration. "Anyway, I rush him to the bathroom to look at his cut, and it isn't deep at all, but his sleeve is still full of blood, so I figure out that it happened a while back and he never thought to ask for help. And that just really made me sad because I couldn't imagine how scared the poor thing must've been, so I ask him why he didn't ask for help, or why he doesn't look scared, and he doesn't reply. Finally, when I ask him why he isn't crying, he just looks at me in the eye and tells me that he'll just get hit more if he cries." Bokuto dropped his face in his hands, his body visibly shaking. "I find out that I'm a father, and a week later, the very first thing my son says to me is that he's too scared of being hit to cry."

There was a solemn pause in the conversation, and the three others exchanged uncomfortable glances. Hesitantly, Kuroo hazarded a hand towards his friend and set it gently on his shoulder, just to remind him silently that they were still there, and that none of them were about to leave just yet. Or ever. Especially not after hearing his heartbreaking, horrifying story. Generally, horror stories like these only happened in fiction, and they were never really publicized in the media, so hearing about something so terrible striking someone so close to them was a shock that they had to process for a few minutes while Bokuto calmed down.

"That's where I drew the line," Bokuto finally restarted after a while, and dragged his face out of his hands, letting them see the anger burning in his eyes. "I promised myself that no matter what, I'd protect this kid. Not because I was emotionally attached to him, at that point, but because no child should have to live like that. And over time, the attachment came, though it's really hard to reverse three years of abuse in the nine months we spent living all three of us together, so I don't think it's perfected, even to this day. Keiji has a lot of trouble trusting others, and I get why and I don't blame him for it, but I just wish he'd open up a little bit more."

"This was a war that a one-man army could not win," Daichi assured him. "You did everything you could."

"Out of curiosity, you didn't... call child services, or the police?" Oikawa asked, lips set in a thin line that showed how he already knew the answer.

"She threatened to pin the abuse on me if I did. And honestly, who's gonna believe that the woman is the abuser in the family? All she'd have to do is knock herself on a few table corners and blackmail Keiji into lying, and there's a perfect recipe for getting me arrested, and Keiji back to living alone with her. I wasn't willing to risk it, so I never really confronted her about anything."

"If you'd explained to the police..." Kuroo trailed off, but Bokuto shook his hand off his shoulder in response.

"I was scared, okay? Whatever. It's all in the past now."

"And... did she stop abusing Keiji once you started looking out for him?" Oikawa asked hopefully, almost too hopefully, and they were all loathe to see Bokuto's eyes become so downcast at the question.

"Nah. Good thing is, when she was around, I was around, so instead of hitting Keiji, we'd just spend hours fighting with each other, on and off. In retrospect, that probably did him more harm than good, too, so there's another thing I fucked up." He rubbed his eyes tiredly. "But I worked, too, and Keiji wasn't sent to daycare because she didn't want anyone to see his bruises, so on the off chance that she came home while I was gone, Keiji had to hide really well, or it didn't end up very nicely. And every single time, I'd have to be the one who sought him out to help him bandage a cut or put salve on his bruises. He was still too scared of me, even after months of living together, to trust me to help, and I think that's what hurt the most."

"You can't fix these things overnight. Seeing how he is with you today, though, I have to disagree with the fact that you were a fuck-up dad," Kuroo assured him, re-setting his hand on Bokuto's shoulder. This time, Bokuto didn't reject him, but hung his head guiltily. "Hey. Come on. You have to look at relative progress rather than absolute progress. Keiji isn't a normal child. Hell, he'll probably never be, but you know what? You loved him regardless and you protected him when nobody else would, and you saved him from so much pain and even reversed some of the psychological effects of the abuse he endured for years, all in the span of one year. And after his mom left for good, he must've improved by leaps and bounds, and there is nobody to praise for that but you and your efforts."

"Thanks," Bokuto mumbled half-heartedly, wringing his hands. "I just... wish I'd done more. If I hadn't acted like such a damn victim all the time, I probably could have prevented him from being so scared all the time. And I probably wasn't the best single father, either, considering that I had zero knowledge in child rearing, and overnight I was left to single-handedly take care of a traumatized four year old, and I had no idea what to do. I panicked a lot, but if I'd been more productive, I probably would've been able to accelerate things along..."

"No use in thinking about 'what if's, right?" Oikawa picked up where he trailed off, giving him a sad smile that seemed all-too knowing. "It's hard to picture Keiji like he used to be, but with whatever I can imagine, if I compare him to how gentle and indulgent he is today, and how vocal he is, I really, honestly can say that you've done a wonderful job, considering the circumstances."

"He's really made progress, I admit to that, but I still haven't seen him socialize or speak up to express his needs, and I'm just scared that it's because of something that happened while he was still with her, or when I was out of the house. I'm scared that it's something I wouldn't have picked up on, like maybe being hit in the head, or something. Keiji's behaviour is really not appropriate for a kid his age, and other than the emotional trauma, I'm so scared that there's something physical there, too," Bokuto looked up at them worriedly, biting his lip.

"Maybe you can go get a head scan done, just to be sure?" Daichi suggested uncomfortably. "I'm sure there are treatments for any kind of trauma-induced behavioural changes. Along with plenty of other resources. Bokuto, your child isn't the only one who's been abused in this day and age. There are lots of resources out there to help both you and Keiji."

"I know. But I didn't want to admit it, and Keiji seemed to be doing mostly okay, so I kind of just... fooled myself into thinking that we'd be okay." He sucked in a breath and looked at the door, as if he was expecting someone to barge in. "But... Tonight, Keiji's mom came back to the apartment, since I guess she never left the keys, and it was just... so easy to fall back into the routine pattern of yelling and swearing... As if she was never really gone in the first place. I think Keiji was shocked to see her, obviously, but I got mad at her, so I think he remembered the days when we all lived together and it sent him back to that scary place that he thought he'd escaped for good..."

"It wasn't your fault," Kuroo repeated, just to drill it into his head, but Bokuto shook his head.

"No, it was. He had dropped the habit of hiding under his bed since months ago, and suddenly he was back there, practically hysterical, and unwilling to listen to me, and it wouldn't have happened if I hadn't gotten frustrated at her. And it felt so natural to get angry, like I couldn't even control it, and I never get angry unless it's about her, so I just... I'm just wondering if it's okay for me to be a parent at all. Maybe I'm just going to hurt Keiji even more if I keep him with me, and I'd die before doing that to him," he admitted, shame practically swimming in his eyes.

"You're a good parent, Bokuto. You know why?" Kuroo asked him, waiting for Bokuto to shake his head to continue. "Because you recognize your limits and admit that you made mistakes, but are willing to correct them. It's admitting that you're only human that makes you so strong."

"I thought so, too..." Bokuto mumbled, mostly to himself, and sighed, falling silent.

None of them seemed to have anything left to say, already having trouble digesting the heavy story. It simultaneously felt like a privilege and a responsibility to have been witness to such an open confession, and none of them were taking it lightly, which is why they let the silence wrap them up, and let the seconds ticking by begin to stitch their wounds.

"Daddy...?"

Finally, it was a small voice, barely higher than a whisper, that cut through the silence, and all four of the men turned slowly towards the hallway, to where the sound was coming from.

Keiji cowered back against the corner when the four pairs of eyes landed on him, and seemingly took a moment to cast out the fear before stepping out, and standing there. In all of his bare-footed, loosely-dressed, owl-plushie-holding glory, Keiji Akaashi still stood straight despite the pain of his past kicking the back of his knees, and faced the adults.

"Is mom going to live with us again?" he asked quietly, voice shaking slightly as he tried to make the syllables out.

All eyes went to Bokuto, who looked like he was about to cry, and they all waited in a respectful silence for his answer.

"No." He was shaking, too, probably trembling to uphold the weight of the responsibilities he had to carry, but his words were firm and strong, and somehow, the three others weren't worried about him. "We're not gonna live with her, and she's never going to hurt you again."

Keiji nodded, and then, his bottom lip was trembling, as if he was trying to hold everything in. But Bokuto was not going to stand by and watch his child suffer this time. He would never let Keiji be hurt again, by anybody. Himself included.

Dropping off the couch to his knees, the simple act of putting himself at eye level seemed to prompt something in his son. Fat tears began to roll down his cheeks, just as tiny gasps escaped the airtight seal of his lips.

Oikawa and Daichi moved out of the way, fondly looking at the crying child as he shuffled towards them, and then outstretched his arms. Bokuto met him halfway, and practically pulled him against his chest, letting out a loud, and satisfied sigh when they were finally holding one another again.

"You're gonna be okay," he promised, kissing the crown of his head. "I love you, and you're gonna be okay."

He let Keiji cry a little bit, as quiet as ever, but this time, he didn't mind, because he knew that his son was not afraid of him. When his shoulders stopped shaking, he gently pulled him back and looked into his teary eyes.

"Can I ask you a question? You might not like it, but it's very important to tell me the right answer," he asked, rubbing comforting circles on his son's arms.

Keiji nodded, looking apprehensive a bit, but he didn't pull away, which was a good sign.

"Did mommy... ever hit your head?" Bokuto asked, his tongue dry at the mere thought of the answer.

Keiji thought for a moment, clutching his owl to his chest as if wanting to hide behind it, and then shook his head.

"Really?"

He nodded, and Bokuto frowned. He didn't object when Keiji slid back into his arms, but looked at the other adults in the room over his shoulder for help.

Daichi shrugged at him, obviously at a loss of what to do, and shifting next to him hinted that Kuroo had moved off the couch, though he couldn't see him past his peripheral vision. However, Oikawa looked deep in thought, and Bokuto looked at him hopefully for answers, until he came up with one.

He mimicked grabbing something in the air, and shaking it violently, and coupled with his grim expression, Bokuto knew exactly what he was talking about. And his heart stopped at the thought of it.

"Keiji, can I ask one more question?" he asked, rubbing circles into his son's back when he refused to pull away. "Did mommy... did mommy ever shake you? Like, really really hard when she got angry?"

Keiji did not reply at first, and Bokuto held his breath apprehensively. Oh, how he longed for a negative answer to this question as well, but finally, when Keiji moved his head to indicate his silent response, Bokuto's heart deflated.

Keiji nodded softly, shyly.

And Bokuto held him that much tighter.

"It's gonna be okay," he promised again, shutting his eyes in silent mourning for what they'd both lost, and his friends did the same in order to take a step back from the staggering amount of shocking information they'd been given in the span of a quarter hour.

"I'll take the mugs to the kitchen," Oikawa volunteered quietly, getting up, and Daichi joined him.

"Lemme help," he quickly offered, the two of them heading out.

"I'm gonna check on the kids," Kuroo announced as well, throwing Bokuto one last look before leaving towards the bedrooms.

This left Bokuto to hold his precious son as if he was all that he had left in the world, and hell, considering all the things that had happened, he may as well be.

...-...-...-...-...-...-...

**Week 3- Tuesday**

The next morning, Bokuto woke up on Oikawa's couch, not even remembering having fallen asleep. His first reflex was to shoot up and look for Keiji, but the only people he saw around him were Oikawa, Kuroo and Daichi, all laid out on spare futons. Kuroo was actually the only one awake, browsing something on his phone, and looked up when he saw movement come from Bokuto.

"Mornin'," the black-haired man greeted with a lazy grin. "How'd you sleep?"

"Better than you guys did, for sure," Bokuto winced, looking at their arrangements. "I'm sorry for making you all come during the night."

"No worries, bro." Kuroo shrugged, returning to his browsing. "I'm just glad it worked out."

"Where are the kids? Are they all okay?" Bokuto asked, nervously looking towards the hallway.

"They're fine, worrywart. Noya took a long time to fall asleep, but the rest of them slept like bricks," Kuroo chuckled, and then put down his phone, a thoughtful expression on his face. "Actually, they probably still are, and mine shouldn't be. It's 6AM and I need to get him ready for daycare since I have to leave for work soon."

"I'm sorry for disrupting your schedule. I know it's pretty tight," Bokuto apologized quietly.

"Stop apologizing, I said it's fine," Kuroo waved him off, pushing his blanket off and getting up with a loud yawn. "Now. Let's see our old Bokuto's return today. The grinning, dumb Bokuto."

"It's nice to know that that's what you really think of me," Bokuto chuckled, swinging his legs off the couch and stretching. "You gonna be okay to get to work on time?"

"Yeah. Kei's used to rushed mornings, so he'll be ready in ten minutes." Kuroo shrugged, stretching as well. "How about you? You gonna be okay with Keiji?"

"Hmm? Yeah..." Bokuto bit his lip. "He'll be fine at daycare, but I'm not sure what to do tonight. I really want to avoid returning to the apartment, but I don't know where else we could go. I'm immediately gonna start looking for a new place, but that could take weeks. I could rent a motel room until then, but that's gonna take a lot out of my savings, so I'm not sure..."

"Hmm..." Kuroo mused out loud, his eyes making him look like he was deep in thought. His entire posture made him constantly look like he was scheming about something or another. "Do you want to come stay at my place? I'm warning you, it's a bit tight, and you're gonna have to take the floor, but I'd appreciate someone taking Kei to the daycare and bringing him back at logical hours. In exchange, you can stay there 'till you find a new place."

"Are you sure?" Bokuto bit his lip, frowning. "If it's really that small, wouldn't I be imposing?"

"Nah. Actually, you'd be doing me a favour by babysitting Kei." Kuroo laughed. "Kenma does a fair job at it, but he had exams to study for, and I always feel guilty asking him to stay over on weekends."

"Well, it's the least I could do, in that case." Bokuto nodded, a grin blooming on his face as he got up, fist-bumping Kuroo on his way to the kitchen. "Thanks, man. I really appreciate it. You're saving my life here."

"It's what friends do," Kuroo shrugged, an amused smile playing on his lips, and went to go get ready for work.

Bokuto got a glass of water, and glanced at the clock, figuring that it was too early to be awake. He waited for Kuroo to get ready and leave with a sleepy-looking Tsukki behind him, wishing him a good day, before locking the front door and returning to the couch.

Later on, when he woke just before 7AM to his internal alarm clock, he went to the kitchen and helped himself to a cup of coffee. After that, as if to make up for the intrusion, he made a full pot of fresh ground coffee and leaned on the counter to watch the sun rise over the buildings he could see outside his window. It was a nice morning, and a fresh new beginning.

Of course, the morning seemed less nice for others, namely Oikawa, who shuffled into the kitchen making zombie noises about five minutes later, obviously having been waken by the tantalizing smell of coffee. Bokuto tried to communicate, but the brunet was absolutely unresponsive until at least half of his mug contents were swallowed.

"Good morning," Oikawa then yawned as if nothing in the world had changed between them, and Bokuto could not help but be so, so grateful that he had people who cared so much around him.

...-...-...-...-...-...-...

The keys jingled in the lock of the front door, and Bokuto's eyes shot open, his heart skipping a beat before he remembered that he wasn't at his place anymore. The unfamiliar surroundings came back into focus as he blinked the sleep from his eyes, and he recognized the sparsely-furnished living room as Kuroo's.

Speaking of the devil, the door swung open and the black-haired man strode in, looking haggard and exhausted from a long day at work. Bokuto briefly glanced at the clock on the wall, reading 6:03PM on it, and frowned when Kuroo kicked off his shoes with a loud sigh.

"I'm home," he announced wearily, and even before Bokuto could reply, footsteps thundered down the short hallway separating the living room and attached kitchen from the only bedroom in the apartment, and Kei came running around the corner, eyes glinting excitedly from behind his huge glasses.

"Welcome home, dad!" he crowed out, smiling in anticipation and finally cooing when Kuroo stepped forward and patted his head.

"Heyo, kiddo. How was your day?"

"It was fun. Yamaguchi brought his video game today and Kenma let us play it while we were waiting for his dad!" the child explained with gusto, and Kuroo chuckled, partly at the kid's energy, and partly at the thought that his best friend would allow them to play in order to sit with them and play as well.

"I'm glad you had fun," he smiled softly, patting his head once more before turning to Bokuto, who was sitting silently on the couch, not wanting to intrude. "Yo. Hope it wasn't too hard to get here."

"Nah, Kenma was very clear with directions," Bokuto shrugged. "But 'tight' is kind of an understatement. You never told me you lived in a 2 1/2."

"It must've slipped my mind," Kuroo shrugged dismissively.

"I told uncle Bokuto which house is ours," Kei announced proudly, buzzing around Kuroo excitedly. "He didn't know which one it was."

"Good thing you're there, Tsukki. Good job," Kuroo grinned down at him, and then dropped his bag by the couch and plopped down where Bokuto made him place.

"Dad, dad, I drew something today, too," Tsukki continued, leaning on the armrest. "I drew it and then Yamaguchi helped me colour it, and I made it for you!"

"Really? Let's see it," Kuroo began, though a large yawn escaped his lips at the end of the sentence, and he deflated, practically sinking into the cushions.

However, as Bokuto's eyes darted between Kei and his father, observing their interactions quietly, he spotted the exact moment where the light in Kei's eyes seemed to dim, and the smile fell from his lips.

"Well I'll show it to you later," he smiled, just a bit more tightly than before. "I'm gonna go play with Keiji so he doesn't get lonely."

"No, Kei, I wanna see it," Kuroo quickly sat back up, trying to act animated even though he looked ragged down to the bone. "Can you show me?"

"No, it's okay. Sit down a little bit, dad. I'll show you later," the blond draped himself briefly, if not slightly hesitantly, over Kuroo's lap in a messy hug, and then turned around and ran back to his room.

"Kei," Kuroo called after him, but the kid did not return, leaving him to sight and lay his face down in his hands with a groan.

"Do you want me to handle dinner?" Bokuto offered quietly, watching Kuroo's body twitch at the question.

"Fuck... I'm not invalid, just tired."

"So... should I handle dinner?" Bokuto smiled a bit sadly, and knowingly. As expected, Kuroo sat up and nodded, eyelids drooping even as he spoke.

"Yeah, if you don't mind."

"Least I could do," Bokuto waved him off quickly and got up, making a beeline for the kitchen, which wasn't that far away, and that was only separated from the living room by a counter.

"Can you hand me a beer from the fridge, while you're at it?" Kuroo mumbled, drawing a laugh from Bokuto.

"Not your housewife, Kuroo." Opening the fridge, he checked its meagre contents and quickly located two bottles from the bottom shelf before heading over to Kuroo, who already had his hand out, waiting. "Here."

"These taste much better when I've got company, for some reason," the black-haired man smirked weakly, popping the cap open and then clanking his bottle with Bokuto's. "Cheers. We both fucked up our lives."

"Cheers. We're getting our shit together slowly but surely," Bokuto huffed, taking a swig and not realizing how much he'd missed this kind of companionship.

"Wow, I needed that."

"Same."

"Now, if only you could satiate my tummy now that you've got my heart, I think I'd marry you in a heartbeat," Kuroo smirked lazily at him, and Bokuto got the message, heading away with a roll of his eyes.

"Boy, you couldn't afford me if you were Madonna."

"Who says I'm not?"

"Still can't afford me."

Both of them laughed as Bokuto got started on dinner, and there was a strange sense of familiarity in the banter that floated between them every so often. Bokuto even almost completely forgot the happenings of the previous night, but seeing his son be unusually quiet at the dinner table later on reminded him that although things were getting better, they were not great. Far from it.

But when Kuroo managed to look lively enough to convince Kei that it was alright to talk about his day with all the energy the three year-old could display, and the air was filled with enthusiastic chatter, Bokuto watched the spark of curiosity dawn anew in Keiji's eyes, and knew that no matter how hard the world tried to break Akaashi Keiji's spirit, it would never succeed.

Keiji had taken after his daddy, after all.

* * *

**Author's Note**

**Immediately, this needs to be said: Bokuto is at fault, too. Bokuto is a victim, but he is not innocent. Keiji's mom is an abuser and a criminal but she is human, and had reasons to do all that she did, however unjustifiable and horrific her reasons and actions were. Now that that's said, let's go a lil bit more into detail about this situation. An unsuitable home for a child is a violent home, but violence does not stop at physical abuse. That is the reason why Bokuto made things worse when he fought with his ex, because being loud, yelling and swearing are incredibly scary for a child, especially when his mom and dad are doing it. Keiji probably thought that they hated him and that they were fighting because of him, which is why he always seemed to want to be invisible. This is a common finding in abused children; wanting to act like they don't even exist. Also, it's normal that Bokuto was not emotionally attached to his kid at first. From his point of view, he was getting his life back on track when this tiny human was thrown at him and he was blackmailed into keeping him, so he wasn't too enthusiastic about it at first. Emotional attachment came over the months, and the reason why Bokuto and Akaashi are so close in the present time of the story is because they've both been so obsessed with keeping the other close: Bokuto, to protect Keiji, and Keiji, to stay with the only adult who loved him. That is very good because a strong emotional bond between father and son will facilitate the rehabilitation process, but at the same time, they have to be wary of co-dependency (the state where neither can function without the other's presence).**

**Bokuto doesn't have anger management problems, he has stress management problems. He's suuuper bad at dealing with stressful situations (cough cough just like in canon) so he'll either get depressed (mentioned crying a lot when Keiji's mom walked out on them) or frustrated (quickly escalating temper with his ex). In this case, a support group is exactly what he needs to learn to deal with his stress.**

**Another touchy topic in this chapter was male rape by a female. Although the definition of rape is something like "non-consenting sexual contact between two or more people", lots of people still don't believe that men can be raped by women, and I've always wanted to write something to put how stupid that idea is out there. Rape happens when one party is not consenting, no matter the sex of the people involved. I also wanted to show this internalized denial, when Bokuto says he couldn't complain and that it happened a lot in college, but the other way around (which is not an excuse, but it's what society pushes for boys/girls alike to believe). Anyway. Just like rape by boys, rape by girls is also detrimental to mental health, and can give you STDs. And a tiny human after 9 months if she wasn't careful.**

**Next, Keiji. I realized as I wrote along that not all of you may know why everybody looked so horrified when Keiji admitted to being shaken? Shaking small children, even up to age 4 or 5, can result in a traumatic condition called (duh) Shaken Baby Syndrome, that can cause severe brain and cervical spine damage. By shaking a baby whose neck is still not strong enough to withstand it, you shake the head (and thus, the brain) back and forth against the skull and bruise the brain, destroy nerves, cause bleeding inside the head, squash soft tissue, etc. It's incredibly dangerous in smaller children, below one year old, but it affects any child whose neck muscles have not fully developed. At age 3, which was the average age when Bokuto came into Keiji's life, his neck was strong, but not strong enough, so if Keiji was shaken repetitively, even at that age, slight brain damage is likely to have occurred (in babies, a single strong flick of the wrist can injure them permanently). Brain damage in infants can range from psychological disorders to mental defects to physical handicaps, and the severity decreases as the neck stability increases. At Keiji's age, what's most likely to have happened is slight behavioural changes due to parts of the brain that were hit against his skull repetitively, disabling some neural pathways. This basically means that Keiji can't complete his thoughts sometimes, which explains his quietness, and his muscle control is weaker than the norm, which is why he's so calm. Think of it as a state of constant fatigue, if you will.**

**That's about it. Very heavy chapter, and I do hope I didn't turn you off from this fic. I really wanted to include a spectrum of single parenthood situations, though, and although all of them are tragic, they are all different kinds of tragedies. I also hope that I dealt with the sensitive topic of child abuse appropriately (I haven't had my child abuse class yet... I think it's next Wednesday). Please feel free to leave me your thoughts and comments! Or message me on Tumblr (same username as on here), which several of you have done and they never fail to brighten my day. Thanks again for all your support! Next chapter night be next Thursday (bc next Saturday idk if I'll have Internet) but we'll see. **


	4. Week 4

**Author's Note**

**Sorry about the delay, school is killing me rn and I'm about to die I think. So the next chapter of AAO is probably gonna be next Saturday, sorry. As for CML, if any readers are here, not this week, unlike what I promised. I'm really sorry, I just can't get my shit together long enough to make it.**

**Thank you so much everybody for the kind and encouraging feedback you keep sending me. I'm speechless at the response to this fic, and I'm so thrilled that you all like it. I'm enjoying writing it a lot, too! **

**Okay so Kuroo's chapter (not beta'ed, will beta later, you know the drill haha). Some of you will recognize that I wrote about my favourite topic in this chapter: hospitals. Oh boy. Have fun, and please do pay attention to the different ways the fathers cope (or don't) with guilt, since they all do it differently. **

**No warnings this time, pretty sad but pretty neutral chapter! Please enjoy (: **

* * *

**Week 3- Friday**

Kuroo could definitely get used to their new routine, with Bokuto in the house to help him out. Sometimes, it astounded him how much trust he had managed to put into someone he'd met 3 weeks ago, but then he'd reminded himself that they both knew the best and the worst about one another despite that fact. Their relationship was one of quality over quantity, obviously. And hell, Bokuto was a good parent (as good as Kuroo could get, anyway), and Tsukki seemed to like him, so he wouldn't complain about the extra hand.

The best thing was waking up thirty minutes later than usual. Without his son to prepare and take to daycare, Kuroo could wake up at 6:30AM, and have his coffee and occasionally, breakfast, before shrugging into his clothes and leaving for the day before the rest of the household even woke up. An added bonus was that Tsukki no longer had to be taken to the daycare at the outrageous time of 7AM (poor Kenma could finally sleep in another half-hour), which also meant that Kuroo saved on daycare fees.

All in all, the deal was pretty sweet. Kuroo left at 7AM and came back at 6PM, and his kid would always be taken care of (and occasionally, dinner would already be ready. This kind of felt like what married life would've been, if he'd gotten that far). And Bokuto never once complained, and even did some household tasks without being asked, and sometimes, Kuroo had to pinch himself in case this was all some elaborate dream he was having because he'd overworked himself into a coma.

The only thing he disliked was the fact that he saw his child a lot less often now, too, seeing as he didn't even take him to daycare in the morning. Kei's bedtime being 9PM, Kuroo got a grand total of 3 hours with his son every single day, all 3 of which he spent in some exhausted daze that prevented him from fully enjoying how bright and excited Kei would be.

He hated this arrangement a lot. But when the bills came in at the end of the month, and he settled his debts with enough to take Tsukki to the local amusement park, on the side, he couldn't help but be glad with the system he'd built from scratch, all on his own.

(Shame that he never actually had enough time to take his son to the amusement park. Or to the movies. Or to the park, or for a walk, or anywhere that wasn't the daycare in the morning).

(But at least he had Kenma to do that all for him).

(Sometimes, he wondered if his best friend was more of a father to Kei than he was).

It was that final thought that pulled Kuroo from his restless sleep, gasping sharply as he shot up, blankets pooling on his lap and then falling off the couch, to the floor in a heap. He took a few more heaving breaths before pursing his lips to calm down, and then breathed deeply, closing his eyes.

The sun had barely risen outside, rays of light filtering softly through the closed blinds on the living room window and falling upon Bokuto's sleeping form sprawled out messily in his futon by the wall. He was drooling in his sleep, snoring softly, and Kuroo chuckled, having half a mind to pinch his nose until he woke up before he figured that he may as well leave the guy to his sleep.

Instead, he stretched and yawned, stalling a couple of minutes by grabbing his phone and checking his Facebook before finally getting up to start his day. First, he headed to the kitchen and groggily made himself some coffee, and let the heavenly substance brew while he went to the bathroom to wash his face and brush his teeth. Then, he quietly tiptoed into Tsukki's room, avoiding Akaashi, who was sleeping by Tsukki's bed on the crib mattress that Kuroo had kept after his son had outgrown his crib. He made the least possible noise whilst looking through his closet for something appropriate to wear to both of his jobs, and once he'd picked out his outfit, he tiptoed right back out, fondly glancing over at his sleeping son's chubby hands as they grasped the blanket accordingly to whatever he was dreaming about.

He decided to forgo breakfast today, the disturbing daydream from earlier cutting his appetite entirely, and instead, he had two cups of coffee to get him ready for the day. At five minutes to 7AM, he was pulling on his shoes and his hoodie, clothes ruffling in the dead silence of the rest of the tiny household, when suddenly, a strange emotion came over him.

He didn't know what it was. Even as he stood up and frowned, trying to figure out why his heart was clenching in his chest and why it suddenly hurt to breathe, he could not seem to find the emotion washing over him in his roster of previously experienced feelings. And he'd experienced a lot of feelings before, over a lot of different things. But none quite like this.

He didn't know what it was, but he did know that the strange feeling drew him towards Tsukki's room, feet shuffling forward before he even realized he'd crossed the threshold, and had stopped next to his sleeping boy.

Somehow, looking at his chubby cheeks and long eyelashes and bright blond hair reminded Kuroo of his mother. She'd been so beautiful, from the first moment that Kuroo had laid his eyes on her. And now, she'd given him a gorgeous blond son who shone brighter than any sun in the Universe, in Kuroo's eyes.

(Huh. Maybe he just appreciated blonds a lot?)

He knelt next to the bed and crossed his arms on it, watching Kei sleep for a few seconds, small chest rising and falling rapidly under the fluffy blankets. He looked so tiny and so fragile that Kuroo felt like he'd disappear if he dared to blink even for a second.

When Tsukki was still a newborn, Kuroo remembered being thrilled when he gripped his finger every time Kuroo prodded his clenched fists with one. The amused nurse at the hospital had told him that his son was only doing it out of instinctive reflex rather than actual recognition, but he'd still been so amazed that such a tiny thing could steal so much space in his heart. The curling of his toes, the fluttering of his eyelids, the kicking of his legs, the visible expansion of his ribs, the smacking of his lips, every single detail about his newborn baby had amazed the hell out of Kuroo.

Three years later, Kei had grown in a hundred thousand ways, and yet Kuroo still wasn't done marveling at how precious and gorgeous he was. Life was a miracle, and Kei was the miracle in Kuroo's life.

"I love you," he whispered quietly, very very quietly as not to disturb the dream his son seemed to be having, and gently caressed Tsukki's soft hair, just to enjoy the feeling of the thin strands flowing through his fingers. The blond whined something unintelligible in his sleep, and by reflex, turned into Kuroo's touch, drawing a chuckle from the black-haired man. "You're too cute, Tsukki," he sighed lovingly, leaning over and pressing a gentle kiss to his son's forehead before drawing back. "Come on. Have a great day."

And with that, when he found that the strange tightening of his chest had disappeared, he backed away from the room until he got in the hallway, and left towards the front door. Bokuto's alarm was ringing loudly in the living room, announcing 7AM with some pop song or another that Kuroo did not recognize (but would ask Bokuto to identify, because he felt like it could go into his 'guilty pleasures' playlist).

"Morning," he called out to his friend, who looked absolutely terrible, as he always did in the morning, and waved as he opened the door.

"Mornin'," Bokuto yawned, and waved back half-consciously until Kuroo closed the door behind him.

Yet another boring day had begun. He was really looking forward to the weekend.

...-...-...-...-...-...-...

Sometimes, Kuroo felt like the whole world conspired against him. Sometimes, he felt like he was the one jinxing his own luck.

He remembered the one time his girlfriend had taken him to the casino for one of their anniversaries. Kuroo had casually joked about going for broke, and ended up losing everything he gambled that night (although he did have a lovely time with his girlfriend, to his credit). And then, when his girlfriend announced that she was pregnant, and asked if they should get married, Kuroo had told her that they didn't need to say vows to be bound together for life (and then, two and a half years later, she'd died, although Kuroo was left at least with their wonderful son). And then, when Tsukki had cried for days on end after his mother finally passed after torturous months of wasting away in a hospital bed, Kuroo had told him that everything would be alright (and then he'd gotten the hospital bill and the apartment bill and Tsukki's daycare fees and a note from his parents telling him he'd asked for it. And maybe, just maybe, he really had deserved it all).

Moral of the story, Kuroo seriously should have picked up the habit of knocking on wood after saying anything and everything, since he seemed to be such an unlucky guy.

(Unlucky, and sometimes, when he was really in the mood for self-indulgent self-pity and self-hate, undeserving of all the bad things that happened to him. He willingly went to church that one time back in high school. That probably counted for something, right?)

As Kenma's voice registered in his brain from the other side of the line, Kuroo's consciousness finally began fading back in, away from the thoughts that he slowly came to realize were nothing but distractions to help him cope with the news he'd just received.

"Kuroo...? Kuroo, are you still there?"

He would have killed for a boring day. Kuroo would have done anything if it meant not receiving these news today, or ever.

"I'm... here," he replied shakily, glancing around him in the kitchen to make sure his boss wasn't around before removing his rubber dishwashing gloves and rubbing some colour back into his pale face. "Sorry, Kenma, I, uhh... could you repeat that?"

"The ambulance should be here in a few more minutes. Kei is gonna be alright, I promise."

"Oh god." Something felt weird, like Kuroo hadn't gotten hit by the intensity of the news just yet. Like he was putting off the crushing realization that his child was in mortal danger at that very moment, and he could do nothing to help. "K-Kenma, can I talk to him...?"

"We're trying to get him to calm down and breathe, so you can't," Kenma informed him, sounding a bit agitated despite his usual cool demeanour. "I removed the bee sting and gave him the EpiPen ten minutes ago, and we don't have another dose at the daycare, so we're praying for the paramedics to get here before the effects wear off."

"How's he doing?" Kuroo asked shakily, swallowing thickly to try and break through the knot in his throat.

"So far so good. He's still swollen up a bit but he doesn't seem to be in respiratory distress. He's crying, which is a good sign."

"Please," Kuroo begged, finally feeling the horrifying realization of his son being in distress wash over him. "Please, I need to say something to him, I can't lose him, too."

And oh, there it was.

Kuroo admitting to something he didn't even know he felt was probably what triggered the panic that finally began to swell inside his chest, all too quickly, all too suddenly like a Big Bang that was over four months in the making.

"Please, he's everything to me. I need to know he's okay," he begged, hearing his voice crack, and Kenma must have heard it, too, because he sighed.

"I'll bring the phone closer. Please don't agitate him."

"Thank you," Kuroo whispered, more to himself, and held on to his phone like he was holding on for dear life as the muffled sounds of crying became louder and louder. And just like any good parent, Kuroo could differentiate his child's cries from another's, and the sound of Kei's pain and fear triggered tears in his own eyes.

"Kei, it's daddy," he heard Kenma say over the sounds of loud sobbing, and the child's breath hitched as he tried to find his already-volatile breath.

"D-Da-Daddy-"

"I love you," Kuroo interrupted him, gritting his teeth. "I know it's scary, but you have to be strong, okay? Please be strong, Kei-" That was the last straw. Kuroo's voice completely fell apart, and the sob that escaped the tightness of his throat was loud and shameless. "Please, please, please."

"Daddy," Kei sobbed out, sniffling loudly. "Daddy, p-please don't cry."

And Kuroo cried. He slid down the side of the sink with one hand on his eyes and the other on his phone and he cried because he didn't know where things had gone so wrong in so many ways.

"Kuroo, I hear the ambulance outside. I'm gonna go brief the paramedics," Kenma took the phone again, not mentioning how his best friend was very obviously having a breakdown on the other line. Kuroo had to give it to him; for someone so shy and socially awkward, Kenma was one hell of a healthcare professional in the making. "I'm hanging up."

"You're going with him, right?" Kuroo asked, breath hitching as he rushed to get his last few words in. "To the hospital?"

"I can't," Kenma sighed, sounding genuinely regretful. "All the other kids are really shaken up and I need to make sure the educators don't have children in shock on their hands. I'll follow in a taxi as soon as I make sure everyone's okay, alright?"

"Is anyone going with him?" Kuroo asked again, voice rising one level higher in hysteria. "Come on, he can't go alone, he's 3 and he's terrified out of his mind!"

"I'm sorry. I'm going to get there as fast as possible, I promise."

"Oh my god. Oh my god, this can't be happening."

"Tetsu, stop," Kenma finally mumbled, sounding a bit like his old, awkward self. "He's gonna be okay. You're stronger than this, so like... stop crying and go to the hospital as soon as you can."

"I can't, it's the rush hour," Kuroo sniffled, not even daring to eye the trays and trays of dirty dishes that were waiting for him to get his shit back together. "Fuck. Fuck, Kenma, I can't do this. I can't... lose him, too."

"You won't. You've always been too stubborn to give in, no matter what the circumstances were, so don't you give up now. Not after 12 years of being so strong," the student nurse mumbled. "I'm gonna go. I promise to follow once everything's under control here."

"Then do me one last favour, Kenma?" Kuroo asked weakly. "Please. Please make sure they take him to the General hospital, not the Children's."

"Why?" Kuroo could practically hear Kenma's frown on the other line. "The Children's is much closer and much better adapted."

"Please do this for me, please," Kuroo begged softly, feeling the fight leave him. "One last favour."

"Of course I'm gonna do it," Kenma huffed as if Kuroo had said something stupid. "I'm just trying to understand."

"Please."

"Yeah." Kenma sighed, and then suddenly drew a sharp breath. "Kuroo, he's choking again. I'm gonna go."

"Ken-"

The line clicked shut, leaving Kuroo hanging with a desperate prayer incomplete on his tongue and a heavy phone in his hand.

"Fuck," he sniffled, and then squeezed his hands tightly. "Fuck!"

"Oi, Kuroo, the dishes are piling up!" one of his coworkers called through the small window to his workspace, but Kuroo couldn't care less, and didn't even respond. Instead, he slammed his fist against one of the cupboard, and then wiped his tears, standing up.

When he did, he saw his coworker looking at him worriedly through the small window, frowning.

"Dude, what's up? You're a mess."

"My... My k-kid-" Kuroo couldn't even finish the sentence before he cut himself off with a choked noise. His coworker, bless his soul, really did look like he felt bad for him, but looked to the side and went white.

"Sorry for whatever happened, man, but the boss just came out of his office for inspection, so you better look busy!" he reminded him, and then rushed off to look busy himself.

Instead of heeding the advice, Kuroo just swore under his breath and leaned over the large sink filled with dirty soapy water, and clicked his phone on again, this time hitting speed dial 3.

His recipient picked up on the third ring, just in time to hear Kuroo sniffle loudly.

"Hey, Kuroo. This is unusual. What's up?"

"Hey," Kuroo greeted in a strained voice. "Daichi, I have a huge favour to ask you."

"What's up?" Daichi repeated on the other end, suddenly sounding sharp and on edge. "Are you crying? What happened."

"Nevermind," Kuroo waved him off. "Tsukki is going to be admitted to the emergency department at the Gen in about 15 minutes. Can you please go stay with him until I get there?"

"Fuck," Daichi took a sharp, worried breath. "What happened?"

"He got stung by a bee at daycare and had a massive allergic reaction." Just thinking about it brought tears back to Kuroo's eyes. "Nobody's with him in the ambulance and I'm worried, so please, please do me this favour and check on him when he gets there. I'll pay you back, I promise."

"You don't have to. It's okay, Kuroo. Calm down." As usual, Daichi sounded like the absolute voice of reason. "I've got this. I'll finish my assignments on my floor and I'll run down to the ED right after."

"Thanks. Really." Kuroo nodded, taking a deep breath to calm his nerves.

"Leave the rest to me."

"Got it. Call me when you get to him."

"For sure."

Kuroo took one last deep breath, and then hung up, slipping the phone back into his pocket. He stood there for a few moments, just to get his thoughts back into place, and then finally slipped the long, ugly yellow rubber gloves back on, just as his boss walked into his workspace.

"Not working and the dishes are piled up." He remarked casually, and Kuroo kept quiet as he restarted his work, not in the mood for talking. "Kuroo, you're gonna have to do better than that."

"I'm trying," the black-haired man mumbled weakly, and felt like he wasn't just talking about the dishes anymore. His fingers were numb and he dropped the plate he was holding back into the water, splashing his apron with dirty water, although he hardly even reacted.

"The heck is up with you?" his boss frowned, coming closer and bending to look at his tired, sunken face and the bags under his reddened eyes. "What's this, allergy season?"

"Yeah," Kuroo choked out, not expecting him to say that, and almost dropped the plate again. "Yeah, sorry. I'm just not feeling well."

"Well, better step your game up. The lunch time rush has only just begun," his boss reminded him, sounding vaguely threatening as he backed off. "I don't want to see you slacking off anymore."

"Mhm," Kuroo replied half-heartedly, and kept working like his heart wasn't hanging from a single string in the hollow of his chest.

Losing his girlfriend had already been hard enough. He couldn't imagine losing his son as well. No partner, no child, no parents to rely on... He'd only have to hope that Kenma and the others would be able to stop him from doing drastic things if it came down to it.

But Kenma promised. Kenma promised that Kei would be okay. And in 12 years of having known one another, Kenma had never taken his promises lightly. And Kuroo trusted his best friend, damn it, he trusted him more than anybody else in this godforsaken world that seemed to love chewing him up and spitting him back out.

He couldn't do this anymore. He could physically feel himself wasting away under the stress of the jobs and the pressure of upholding his routine, all for the sake of his tiny child (who might not even be alive anymore by the time Kuroo got to him, oh god, he couldn't lose him, too). And yet, the worst part was coming to realize that he wasn't a father to Kei. He was the individual of male sex that had participated in his conception, but in no way had he behaved like a proper father since his girlfriend got hospitalized.

Tsukki had practically been an orphan for almost a whole year, with a hospitalized mother and a father too busy trying to be a good father to actually be one at all.

Realizing that all of his efforts were for naught was probably the most crushing thing. Kei was growing up by the day, and Kuroo was too busy burying himself under tons and tons of work to watch him become the wonderful, sensitive, beautiful young boy he truly was. And not only that, but he was also burdening his kid with his problems, when the blond had his own problems to worry about.

His child was 3 and having an allergic reaction that strangled him from the inside, and he'd been the one to comfort Kuroo. Somewhere down the line, something must have gone wrong in the way they viewed one another as parent and child.

Kuroo promised himself that the next time he saw his son, he'd start all over. He wasn't a super-daddy extraordinaire like he bragged to be, he was just a man who couldn't even be a father to his own son.

He continued working in silence, trying to distract himself with the clanking of the ever-piling dishes that he just couldn't seem to be able to wash at his usual pace. His mind was elsewhere, however, and after the third glass he almost dropped (and one that he did drop and guiltily swept into the trash bin, looking guilty), he knew that he would not be able to relax until Daichi called him.

Thankfully, his phone rang in his pocket a few minutes after that thought, and Kuroo had thrown his gloves off and grabbed it before he could even blink.

"Hello?" he answered anxiously, not even bothering to check the caller ID.

"Kuroo, it's me," Daichi replied from the other line immediately. "Tsukki just went into a room. The doctors are looking at him now."

"Can you follow?" Kuroo asked, biting his nails nervously though he hadn't done that in a long time. "Is the staff giving you hell?"

"No, no," Daichi chuckled, attempting to diffuse the tension. "Kei recognized me and called me out while they took him to the room, so the staff is just waiting for him to be stabilized to let me in."

"Thank god," Kuroo all but cried out, relieved beyond any relief he'd ever felt in his entire lifetime.

"Where are you? Work?"

"Yeah. I really can't leave or my boss is gonna have my head," he groaned loudly, rubbing his forehead tiredly.

"Maybe you should just quit," Daichi suggested quietly. "More than money, more than new toys, more than anything, Kei needs you right now. I think you need to come see him yourself."

"It's easy to think about it like that right now, but..." Kuroo trailed off, chewing on his lip. "I've been through the whole hospitalization business before. This is going to cost so much, I might even struggle to afford rent this month. I can't miss a single hour of work, and this one is the one that pays cash, so I have to work my best to get paid at the best."

"Isn't that, like... you know... kind of illegal?"

"It pays," Kuroo shrugged, lips set in a thin frown. "I gotta do what I gotta do."

"Well, I'm not gonna patronize, but I think that what you gotta do right now is come see your kid in the hospital, bills and jobs be damned," Daichi managed to say in such a neutral and objective tone of voice that Kuroo had to appreciate his diplomacy. He'd picked exactly the right guy to help him out with something like this. Other than the fact that Daichi worked in the General Hospital's housekeeping department and would have been the first one to reach Tsukki anyway.

"I'll see what I can do. Maybe if I finish working the lunch rush, I can get the remaining hour of my shift off. But then at 2PM I have to go to my other job, so I probably won't be able to stay long..."

"At least call in sick for your next job. Is that the Starbucks job?" Daichi asked.

"Yeah."

"People can do without their coffee for one day. Call in sick and come to the hospital as soon as you can," Daichi finally suggested, always the voice of reason, as usual, and Kuroo found himself smiling. Maybe things wouldn't be that bad after all.

"Okay. I'll do that."

"Great." Daichi paused for a moment. "Ah, they called. I'm going to go see Tsukki."

"Thank you." Kuroo found his fingers tightening over his phone again. "Keep me on the line."

"Wouldn't dare do otherwise, super-dad," Daichi chuckled, but Kuroo could only smirk weakly in response, and anxiously wait for Daichi to get to his son.

He didn't need Daichi to tell him when he reached Tsukki. The sound of loud crying on the other side was enough to notify him when Daichi was close enough to Tsukki.

"Ah, wait," Daichi spoke to someone else. "His father is on the line. Would you like to speak to him directly?"

"Daichi?" Kuroo asked, throat dry at the sound of his son's distressed voice.

"Kuroo, the doctor's gonna talk to you, okay?"

"Thanks," Kuroo nodded to himself, and waited in bated breath for his friend to pass the phone.

"Hello, Mr. Kuroo? I'm Dr. Evans, the resident assigned to your son," the man, sounding pretty young, introduced himself. "Just to confirm your identity, could you say your full name as well as your child's full name and date of birth?"

"Kuroo Tetsurou. My son's name is Tsukishima Kei, and he's born on September 27 and he's three years old," Kuroo rattled off worriedly. "Is he okay?"

"He's stable and responding well to our resuscitation measures," the doctor explained, but Kuroo blanched only after those few words.

"Resuscitation? He died!?"

"No, no, pardon me. That's lingo for any measure we take to reverse life-threatening effects the anaphylaxis had on his body. Thankfully, the paramedics got another shot of epinephrine in him upon arrival, and he got another shot upon admission, so he did not have any fainting episodes. He had very low blood pressure and very constricted airways, borderline in shock, but we were able to give him enough IV fluids and stabilize his airways without intubation. He's still getting medication, but he'll be fine."

"Christ." Kuroo had not realized that his brain had short-circuited from the overload of information until the doctor stopped talking, obviously waiting for him to answer. "Uhh... So he's... he's okay?"

"Yes, he's fine." The doctor sounded like he was smiling, but Kuroo felt like doing anything but. "We've contacted the first responder at the daycare for more information and we've deduced that your son is severely allergic to bee stings. This is not the first time he's been stung, right?"

"N-No. The first time was last fall. But how come he didn't do this last time?" Kuroo asked, totally disoriented and distracted by the sound of crying still in the background.

"Anaphylactic reactions only occur upon second exposure to the allergen. There is nothing to feel guilty about as there is no way you could have known without doing an allergy test."

"I see," Kuroo nodded, still as white as ever.

(It wasn't like he'd declined an appointment for an allergy test after that first sting because he didn't have enough time or money to do it. It wasn't like he could've completely prevented this if only he'd been a better father).

(He had everything to feel guilty about).

"Now your son is going to be kept in observation for at least 4 hours, up to 6 is he doesn't recover fully in that time. You've sent the child's uncle on your behalf, which is understandable, but he is not on file as a legal guardian, and so cannot discharge Kei from the hospital. You need to come down here as soon as possible to follow up on him and take him home," the doctor continued, and Kuroo swallowed a heavy sigh.

"I... I can't come. I'm working. Sawamura Daichi is someone I trust, can't you make an exception?"

"No. Hospital policies. You have to come and see him." The doctor paused, as if hesitating. "And with all due respect, your child is severely in distress and refuses to tell any of us why he's so scared, even now that the event is over. It may be in your best interest if you come down, or at least send another legal guardian of the child to stay with him."

"I'm a single father," Kuroo choked out almost instinctively, not knowing what else to say or what else to do.

"I'm sorry," the doctor sighed with all the sympathy in the world. "But Kei needs his father right now, nothing more, nothing less."

Kei needed nothing more, just a dad he could rely on. And he needed nothing less, especially not a person who was too busy trying to keep his head above the waves to realize that his feet could touch the bottom if he straightened his legs.

"Alright. Could I talk to him?"

"Of course. We will update you on the situation when you get here," the doctor finished with a hint of warning, and Kuroo took it very seriously. The next phonecall he'd be making after this one would be to the Starbucks.

"Pleasure meeting you, Dr. Evans."

There was the sound of a phone being pulled away, and the incessant crying became stronger as the phone came closer to the little boy in the bed. Kuroo could just imagine him hooked up to machines and masks and wires and his heart split open at the familiar image. He never had wanted to go through this again.

"Kei? Daddy's on the phone," he heard Daichi speak on the other line, and chuckled when his son immediately hiccuped and sniffled, probably reaching out to handle the phone.

"Daddy...?" the little boy asked hesitantly as soon as he got his hands on the device, sniffling loudly.

"Hey, my little hero. It's me," Kuroo sighed out in immense relief. "How are you feeling?"

"I'm scared," Kei whined softly, uncharacteristically meekly. The smile faded from Kuroo's face at the sound of his son's distress.

"You wanna tell daddy about it?" he asked softly, trying to filter out the sounds of the lunch hour rush behind him, through the window, only to concentrate on Kei's voice.

"It was scary," the child lapsed into fresh sobs. "There was a bee that bit me when I was playing outside with Yamaguchi and it hurt a lot, so Yamaguchi went to go get Kenma, but then when he was gone it was hard to breathe and I fell down and it hurt a lot everywhere."

"Shh, baby, shhh, it's over now," Kuroo whispered, hoping that he was being soothing.

"A-And then, Kenma came and carried me inside but there was a thing in my throat and I couldn't breathe at all," he continued on regardless, his voice rising in pitch, and Kuroo thought he briefly heard Daichi hushing Kei from the other side of the line. Hot jealousy and disappointment coursed through him at his friend being able to do what he couldn't do for his own son, but he swallowed it down.

"Kenma helped, though, didn't he?" Kuroo continued for Tsukki, who returned to telling the story immediately.

"Kenma put a big needle into my leg and it hurt a lot, too," he whined.

"But then you could breathe, right?" Kuroo tried to comfort him, and sighed in relief when Tsukki made an affirmative noise.

"Mhm... But I was itchy everywhere and it hurt and I blew up like a balloon. I don't want to be a balloon, because then if someone put another needle in my leg, I would explode like a balloon!"

"You wouldn't explode. I heard the nice doctors in the ambulance gave you a needle and the doctors at the hospital gave you a needle, and you're still okay, right?"

"It was scary," Kei sobbed, as if trying to hammer a point home, one that he couldn't articulate with his 3 year-old vocabulary. "Kenma didn't come with me and uncle Sawamura only just came to see me and you didn't come and I was scared."

"I'm sorry," Kuroo apologized as sincerely as he could, but he knew that words meant nothing to his distressed toddler. "I'm really, really sorry, sweetheart. Daddy had work and couldn't come."

"But I was all alone and scared," his son all but screeched, and Kuroo's heart snapped cleanly in two promptly. The three year-old spoke nothing but the truth, and Kuroo deserved to have the ugly truth of his negligence shoved in his face until he, too, couldn't breathe. An eye for an eye.

"I know," he choked out, feeling the tears return to his eyes. "But you were so, so brave, and you were such a good boy. I can take you to the zoo this weekend for being such a good boy today, I promise."

"You never pinky swear with me, daddy," Kei told him quietly, as if he was beginning a whole new train of thought, and Kuroo suddenly froze. "You make promises but you never do them. And you're always too tired to play with me and you come home so late and you never like my stories." A pathetic sniffle followed the pent-up frustration in the toddler's tone, and Kuroo was literally shocked speechless by the things coming out of his son's mouth.

He never thought that Tsukki would be harbouring dark skeletons like these in his tiny, tiny children-sized closet. This was too much of a burden to bear for anybody, let alone a small child.

"Tsukki-"

"Is it because you don't like me?" Tsukki finally asked in a quiet voice, and in the silence that followed, Kuroo heard Daichi's whispered 'Christ' and the sound of clothes ruffling.

"Kuroo?" His friend's voice filtered over the line, hard and unforgiving. Kuroo, who was already paralyzed by the heavy confession, could barely even steel himself for what came next. "I will give you twenty minutes to get your sorry ass down here, or so help me I will knock some sense into you the next time I see you. Don't do this to him."

"Daichi, hand the phone back to Tsukki," Kuroo ordered dryly, swallowing past the ball in his throat.

"No. Enough phone conversation! Kei does not need an imaginary friend talking to him through thin air, he needs his dad, and that would happen to be you," Daichi insisted, but Kuroo was done.

There were just too many things happening at once.

"Daichi, I want to talk to Kei. Give him the phone, now!" he yelled out, gritting his teeth to keep the frustrated tears at bay.

"Kuroo!" His manager's voice came from the window behind him. "Stop yelling, for god's sake! Get back to work!"

"Fuck," Kuroo breathed into the phone, not knowing what to do anymore. "Fuck, please, Daichi, just give him the fucking phone, god."

"Control yourself," Daichi warned him lowly, sympathizing with his situation, but not forgiving him just yet.

"God," Kuroo bit his lip so hard, his mind blanked out for a second, and when he came back, there was the sound of soft, apprehensive breathing on the other line. And he knew he couldn't fuck this up. "Kei, darling, are you listening?"

"... Mhm..."

"Are you sure you're listening really really well? I'm gonna say this a hundred times if you want, but I want you to understand carefully," Kuroo breathed to him.

"... Mhm..."

"I love you," Kuroo put it simply, as simply and effectively as possible. "I've loved you from the moment you were born. I loved you when you were a tiny tiny baby, and I loved you when you grew up into a strong boy, and I love you today, right now, as the amazing son you are. Don't you ever think for a second that I don't want you, you hear me? You are the most precious thing to me on this entire planet, and everything I do, I do for you. I love you, Tsukishima Kei, you are important like the whole world to your daddy."

There was soft breathing on the other end as the young child integrated the words, and Kuroo came to realize that maybe, despite the superior intellect for his age, Tsukki hadn't understood the complicated, emotional sentences he'd thrown at him from the bottom of his heart. A simple "you mean more to me than chocolate cake" probably would have sufficed...

"But... You can't live without the whole world, so it's more important than me," the blond finally answered with his infallible toddler logic.

"That's the thing. I can't live without you. That's why you're like the whole wide world to me," Kuroo attempted to explain, but then there were tears running down his cheeks and he was sniffling pathetically, wiping his damp cheeks with the back of his hand. "You're the most important thing in my life, sweetheart, and I'm sorry if I ever made you feel like you weren't."

"Kuroo, get off the phone! You haven't even touched those dishes!"

"Daddy loves you," Kuroo breathed out, trying to ignore his boss' yelling on the other side.

"I love you, too, daddy..." Kei finally sighed out. "It's just so boring without you every day. I wanted to play with you and show you my drawings and I wanted you to pick me up from daycare and I wanted to go to the food store with you, and I wanted to do a lot of things with you. But you were always so sleepy from working all the time and I didn't wanna bother you..."

"You never bother me, never," Kuroo assured him. "Besides, now that you've told me all of this, we can do everything you want. We still have a lot of time."

"No, we don't." And just like that, the trembling in Tsukki's voice had returned. "It's very late now, so we can't do all these things together."

"What do you mean by that? It's only the afternoon," Kuroo frowned, not understanding what Kei was trying to tell him.

"God help me, Kuroo, I still see you on your phone. Don't ignore me, put the phone down, and get back to work. This is your final warning!" his boss yelled from the window. "I'm coming in there if you don't end this conversation in the next fifteen seconds!"

"Kei, what do you mean by it being too late?" Kuroo asked, totally ignoring the yelling behind him and the palpitations of his accelerating heart.

"It's almost bedtime for me, isn't it?" Kei asked shakily, meekly, and Kuroo realized after a second that his son was not embarrassed, but terrified out of his wits.

"What? Why? No!" Kuroo frowned, honestly not understanding the toddler-speak. "You're not going to sleep just yet."

"But this is like the place where mommy went to sleep, right?" Kei finally asked, sniffling anew.

And Kuroo suddenly, very very abruptly, understood. And the implications of his son's train of thought hit him in the face like an actual train, stealing his breath away from him.

"N-No... I mean, yes, but you're not going to sleep like mommy," Kuroo tried to explain, fumbling with his words and trying to suppress the unwanted memories and images whilst retaining his cool.

"But mommy was in a bed like this with the beeping things and the mask and the tubes in her arm, and I have them too," Kei sobbed out, sounding genuinely scared. "You said mommy went to sleep and didn't wake up again, and I'm really really tired and I don't want to go to sleep."

"No, baby, you're not gonna die," Kuroo breathed sharply. "You're gonna be okay. It's not the same thing, you're really gonna be okay, I pinky swear. For real, this time."

"Fuck, Kuroo, do you not even care anymore?" There was the sound of a door swinging on its hinges, and Kuroo turned with wide eyes to see his manager stomp in, looking furious. "Give me your phone, I'm confiscating it for the shift."

"Leave me alone," Kuroo hissed, stepping back, and at the same time trying to concentrate on Tsukki's crying on the other end.

"A-And I want to play with you but I can't do that if I don't wake up again. And I really wanted to bring Yamaguchi to our house to show him my dinosaur toys, and Kenma promised to buy me a popsicle, so I don't want to go to sleep yet," he ranted on. "Daddy, I'm scared of being asleep for always."

"You won't be, sweetie, I promise. The nice doctors made sure that you will wake up when you go to sleep," Kuroo assured him, simultaneously trying to motion to his boss to wait just one more second and trying to keep the conversation with his terrified child going.

"But what if I don't?" Tsukki persisted, hiccuping loudly.

"Kuroo, I'm gonna count to three before I fire your ass! And nobody will pay you cash like this, so you'd better think twice before you open your mouth again!"

"You will, I promise," Kuroo shut his eyes tightly, taking a deep breath and then throwing a pleading look at his boss.

"One!"

"But when mommy went to sleep, you were very sad and cried a lot," Kei sniffled.

"Two!"

"If I go to sleep, you'll be even more sad and you'll cry even more and this time, I won't be awake to make it all better. I don't want you to be sad again, daddy."

"Three!"

"I quit."

The world fell off of his tongue as if he hadn't even planned to say them in the first place. But as calmly as they came out, they dissipated into the air between them, and suddenly, Kuroo felt like he'd shed three hundred pounds too many of his shoulders and on his heart.

"I quit," he repeated to his manager, eyes wide as if he could barely believe himself. "My son is in the hospital, and he is a hundred thousand times more important than your dishes. I quit."

"See how grateful your brat is when you're piss-poor because you threw a tantrum," his boss seethed at him. "Get the fuck out and never come here again."

"I'd be glad to," Kuroo clicked his tongue, still a little bit numb, throwing the apron off of himself and grabbing his bag by the door.

Swaggering out into the restaurant and out through the front door had never felt so satisfying, though he could hardly stop his hands from shaking.

"Kei, sweetie, are you still there?" he asked, calmer than he thought he would be, considering everything that'd been said to him in the span of ten minutes.

"Mhm... Are you mad because I said all those things?"

"No, I'm not mad. I'm happy you told me how to feel. And I'm gonna make it better," Kuroo sighed, quickly flagging down a taxi that often hung around their fast food joint. "Did you tell me all of this right now because you thought you were gonna go to sleep after that?"

"Mhm... I wanted to say everything in case I got too sleepy and couldn't do it after, kind of like how mommy did it," Kei muttered, as if ashamed.

"God, sweetheart. I'm so sorry." Slipping into the cab, Kuroo briefly put the phone down to the talk to the cabbie. "General hospital please. The faster you get there, the more I'll tip."

The man seemed weirded out by the instruction, but seeing Kuroo's pale face and his choice of destination, figured that he might as well do it.

"Kei?"

"Mhm...?"

"Can you give me uncle Sawamura on the phone please? I need to tell him something, too. I'm on my way to the hospital to come and see you, okay?"

"Really?" Kei gasped in wonder. "But you're not at work?"

"I'm not working anymore," Kuroo muttered unclearly. "I'm gonna come over and stay with you until the doctors say it's okay to take you home."

"You're gonna take me home?" the little boy repeated in disbelief, as if that simple act meant the world to him. It probably did. Kuroo felt incredibly guilty for it.

"Yeah. And for dinner, we can have whatever you want."

"I want hot dogs."

"We'll talk about it when I get there, okay? Can I talk to uncle Sawamura please?"

"Mhm," Kei sing-sang into the phone, all of his fear seemingly forgotten in light of this new information. It actually broke Kuroo's heart how so much pain could have been avoided if he'd been more receptive to his son's cues. "I love you a lot, daddy. I didn't mean all of the mean things I said."

"No, no, you meant them, and it's a good thing you told me. You taught daddy a good lesson," Kuroo chuckled. "I love you, too. Very very much. More than you can imagine."

"Like the world?"

"More than the world."

Tsukki giggled softly, and the giggling faded as the phone was pulled away from him.

"Nice save," Daichi finally sighed into the receiver. "For a moment, I thought I'd actually have to punch you."

"I probably deserve a punch, and maybe a kick for good measure," Kuroo chuckled self-deprecatingly. "I've really been stupid this whole time. Trying to be a super-dad and actually being nothing."

"Your intentions were good, if anything. But money issues can be fixed with outside help. Loving you son, though... That's something only you can do," Daichi chuckled. "How much time will it take you?"

"Ten minutes, hopefully," Kuroo assured him. "And you know what? You deserve a doughnut or something for being a trooper. Thank you so much for everything. I really wouldn't have been able to do anything without you."

"My pleasure. If you ever need the voice of reason again, feel free to call," Daichi snorted, amused at his own quip, and Kuroo rolled his eyes.

"Alright, alright, if your head keeps inflating like that, you're the one who's gonna explode."

"Don't explode, uncle Sawamura!" Tsukki's voice came from the background.

"How did he hear that?"

"You've been on speakerphone this entire time, Kuroo."

"Hey! I've been saying some really personal things all this time. No fair."

"Just making sure you weren't making a fool of yourself," Daichi assured him. "Also watching out in case I had to intervene."

"Man, I'm not sure if I love you or hate you for being so careful," Kuroo huffed, rubbing his face. "Yo, so Kenma should arrive sometime soon to see Tsukki, since he doesn't know I'm on my way. I'm gonna call the Starbucks and then meet you in the ED. Sounds good?"

"Yup. I'll see you here, then." With that, there was a click, and Daichi's voice changed, becoming more focused. Kuroo realized he must have turned the speakerphone off. "Hey, Kuroo... What you did was really great. It wasn't easy, but it is so worth it, let me tell you." He sighed quietly, happily. "You should see the smile on Kei's face. I don't think I've seen him this happy before."

"I can't believe it's taken me this long to notice," Kuroo shook his head sadly, and leaned back into his seat, feeling more relaxed than he had in over half a year. "That all of this time, we've both been looking at the ground under our feet instead of raising our heads and admiring the sky full of stars."

...-...-...-...-...-...-...

When Kuroo got to the hospital ten minutes later (and thirty dollars later), he all but ran into the ED and demanded to see his son. The nurse at the front desk had to ask him to calm down, but Kuroo was breathless and worried and there would be no stopping him.

(Except maybe the threat of calling security if he didn't sit down while the nurse arranged some things, but at least Daichi showed up in the waiting room and escorted him to Tsukki's room before anything of the like could happen).

"How's he doing?" Kuroo asked as they walked down, wringing his hands as the nervousness welled right back up inside of his with every step.

"Kenma arrived a few minutes after you hung up. He managed to get Kei to fall asleep, so he's probably still sleeping," Daichi reported.

"That's good. Kenma's so good at this kind of stuff... Bet I couldn't even do the same if I tried," he sighed, chuckling self-deprecatingly.

"Yeah, no, now you're just making yourself sad on purpose," Daichi rolled his eyes. "Kuroo, you've done an amazing job on your own so far. Sure, you might've fucked up here and there-"

"And by that, you mean that my kid thought I wanted him to die, yup."

"-Let me finish, god." Daichi put a hand on his shoulder. "Listen, you might've fucked up here and there once in a while, but you changed quickly enough to fix things." He smiled, mostly to himself. "Tsukki was smiling and humming himself to sleep. There is no way you can say that you've fucked up for sure when your kid looks that happy."

"I wish I could've made him that happy earlier... Like ten months earlier," Kuroo sighed, stopping at the door of Tsukki's room. He could see Kenma through the glass, sitting by his son's side and caressing his hair as he slept, looking tiny and fragile with the mask on his face and the tubes in his arms, and his chest clenched again. "I wish his mom never got sick in the first place."

"We all wish for bad things not to have happened," Daichi began, sounding like he knew exactly what he was talking about. "But I think that most of all, you should wish for things to get better quickly. There's no changing the past, but you sure as hell can fix the future."

"Amen..." Kuroo nodded, eyes still trained on his precious baby boy, and took a deep breath. "And I'm starting now."

"I'll leave you to it," Daichi smiled to him briefly, and patted his shoulder. "I gotta go back to work for now. Take care. Of him, but also of yourself."

"Thanks." Kuroo turned and set his hand on Daichi's shoulder as well, gripping tightly. "Honestly, thank you. You're like... the angel on my shoulder telling me what to do. And it was really nice of you to come and watch Tsukki for me."

"No problem." Daichi shrugged amusedly. "I still want that doughnut, though."

"I'll bring it to tomorrow's session. You can have a dozen, for all you've done," Kuroo chuckled, and the two of them grinned at one another for another moment before Daichi quietly wished him luck, and turned to leave.

Kuroo watched him go and disappear into the waiting area, and then steeled himself, turning his gaze back to the boy in the bed. He owed Kei a lot of explanations, and had a lot of catching up to do. And there was no better time than the present to start.

He silently stepped into the room at first, not wanting to disturb Kenma, who seemed engrossed in his mechanical caress of Tsukki's soft hair. His best friend didn't even turn to look at him, probably not hearing him come in, until his heel clicked too loudly on the tile, and the blond turned to him.

"Kuroo." It was said in his usual monotone, though his hand did pause in its motion. "You came."

"I figured it was time I stopped running away from reality," the black-haired man shrugged, trying to play it off as casual, but his grip was tight on the hem of his shirt and it gave away all the nervousness he felt.

"Which is...?" Kenma prompted him.

"I know that what I've been doing so far was wrong." Kuroo clicked his tongue, sounding nothing but apologetic. "I thought that if I had enough money to pay for everything we needed, then I'd make Kei happy. But I've realized that money isn't happiness. It's pretty damn close, but money can't buy me time, and I refuse to spend another day forgetting how quickly my son is growing up without me by his side."

"That took you a while to figure out," Kenma rolled his eyes, but there was no bite to his words. "I'm glad you finally made it to the finish line, Kuroo. You're getting a hang of this whole 'parenting' thing."

"Hey, smartass, you could've told me earlier that I was doing things wrong," Kuroo pouted, stepping forward and stopping by Kei's bed, opposite to where Kenma was still sitting with his hand on his son's forehead. Kei's face still looked a bit swollen, but Kuroo wouldn't know. After all, he felt like he'd seen so little of his son in the past ten months that he felt like he hardly knew him anymore.

"You wouldn't have stopped until you figured out for yourself that what you were doing was not as helpful as you thought," Kenma shrugged. "But whatever. You're here now, and that's all that matters." And he removed his hand from Kei, scooting back a bit. "He's your son, and ultimately, nothing is going to make him happier than being treated like it."

Kuroo gazed down at Tsukki, tiny body resting under the sheets in a bed that looked too big for someone his size, his breath lightly fogging up the oxygen mask over his mouth and nose, and he listened to the dull whirring of the IV pumps as clear fluid flowed into his reddened, swollen limbs, to the clanking of the wires extending from under his gown when he twitched, and felt something warm blossom inside of him as he watched the heart rate monitor record every beat and every breath that proved that his precious child was still alive.

"I love you," he sighed heavily, as if expelling some heavy, suffocating weight from his lungs once and for all, and sat down next to Tsukki, gently holding his hand.

Just like back then, when everything was still alright, Kei's fingers instinctively closed up on Kuroo's hand, and this time, Kuroo knew that the act was more than just primitive reflex.

...-...-...-...-...-...-...

Tsukki slept for about two hours, probably exhausted out of his wits from the ordeal that had taken place earlier. The nurses that came in did their assessments quickly (Kenma asking them the occasional question about their interventions) and he slept through it all, and in those two hours, Kuroo could not help but wonder how he'd let this tiny miracle drift so far from him.

He was gently caressing Tsukki's cheek, idly texting Bokuto to update him on the situation and to tell him that he wouldn't be picking up Tsukki at the daycare, when suddenly he heard a small shift in the blankets.

Glancing over tiredly, his attention snapped into place when he was faced with a pair of golden eyes looking right at him, wide, as if disbelieving. Tsukki had not moved other than a slight shift, as if afraid that moving would dispel the illusion, and it hurt all that much to realize that.

"Heyo, champ. How are you feeling?" Kuroo asked softly, moving his hand away from his face to take his hand. He was surprised that Tsukki did not react to the next pressure on his hand.

"Kenma?" Tsukki immediately asked, turning his head to the side to look at the student nurse, who only offered him a small smile and a quiet nod.

And if Kuroo felt dejected at being ignored so easily, the feeling immediately dissipated when Kei's grip on his hand got tight enough to blanch his skin, and then a second hand joined in, clinging on tightly.

"Daddy, you're here," he cooed, eyes wide for another second before a grin split his face. "You're here!"

"Of course I am," Kuroo grinned right back, unable to keep the giddiness out of his voice. His son's happiness was infectious. "How are you feeling?"

"Better," Tsukki nodded vigourously, scooting closer to him. "Dad, Kenma brought Mr. Stego from the daycare for me so he could stay with me!"

"Did he now? I don't see him," Kuroo looked around for his son's infamous dinosaur figurine, but it was nowhere to be found.

"I took it away so he wouldn't hurt himself in his sleep," Kenma informed him. "But Kei, now that daddy's here, you don't need to play with Mr. Stego."

"I don't want to," Kei hummed softly, drumming his fingers on Kuroo's hand. "I play with Mr. Stego all the time, so now I want to stay with you, daddy."

"For sure," Kuroo chuckled, and drew Tsukki's head closer so he could press a kiss to his cheek. However, almost by reflex, the blond ended up throwing his arms around Kuroo's neck and clung on for dear life, even as Kuroo drew back. "Oof. You're heavy, Kei."

"I'm a big boy already," Kei insisted, not letting go.

"Well..." Kuroo sighed amusedly, guessing his son's intentions, and gently slipping the covers off of him to lift him off the bed, and into his lap, where Kei pressed himself close to Kuroo's chest as hard as possible, not minding the tubes sticking out of him. "I guess you're still small enough to fit on my lap, so you can stay here for now."

"I wanna stay here forever with you," Kei insisted good-naturedly. "But you have to pinky swear from now on!"

"Alright, gimme your pinky. Let's do this right here, right now," Kuroo bounced him softly to pull him away, just enough for him to see the pinky Kuroo was offering.

Kei gasped excitedly, winding his own pinky around his dad's and the two of them shook their hands a bit, as if making sure that the bond was strong enough. Wordlessly, twin grins bloomed on their faces, and the two snickered in unison, as if realizing how ridiculous they were being. Kuroo ducked his head to be able to tap his forehead against Tsukki's, and closed his eyes for a second, enjoying the low sound of chuckling coming from the tiny human sitting on him. Then, as he drew back, he tapped Tsukki's nose with his finger, drawing another amused giggle from him. As soon as he was back to sitting straight, his son's arms were around him again, his cheek pressed against his chest.

Kuroo sighed blissfully and loosely draped an arm around his son, then grinned up at Kenma. His best friend was sitting quietly as ever on the other side of the bed, and twitched a smile at him when their gazes met.

"I think the nurse wants a word," the blond indicated, shrugging towards the door. Kuroo turned his gaze to see the nurse poke her head in, a fond smile on her face.

"I really won't be long," she whispered, excusing herself as she stepped in. "I'm just going to see about taking the mask off if he doesn't need it anymore."

"That's great," Kuroo sighed in relief. "Tsukki, you wanna turn and say hi to the nice nurse? She's gonna see if you're okay to breathe without the mask."

"Oh, good," Kei huffed in a strangely mature-sounding voice, which drew a laugh from his dad and the nurse alike.

"Okay, little man," the nurse smiled at him as he turned around, little heels kicking Kuroo's shins as he swung them lightly. "I'm just gonna listen to your breathing, so I'm gonna put my little listening device under your gown."

"Okay," Tsukki nodded, looking up at Kuroo for approval. The nurse slipped her stethoscope to listen to his lungs and the boy hissed at the contact. "It's cold."

"I'll be done in a jiffy."

"Dad, what's a jiffy?" Kei asked, looked up at Kuroo, who tapped his nose amusedly.

"It's an amount of time." Watching the nurse retract her stethoscope, looking satisfied, he shrugged. "About as much time as it took for her to do that."

"Whoa." Tsukki gasped, turning back to her. "It's over."

"Yup! You were great." Turning to Kuroo, she smiled at him, too. "It doesn't sound like his bronchi are still constricted, and air is getting to the bottom of his lungs, so I'll take the oxygen off for now."

"Thank you," Kuroo nodded to her as she finally took the mask off of Kei's face. "One more question. How long is he gonna have those IVs?"

"Until he leaves. The rate might change if the doctor feels like he's stable, but we want to keep the vein open just in case, so there's a minimum amount of millilitres that always have to be infusing," she explained patiently.

"And when can I go home?" Kei piped in, probably not following anything but the bits he understood. "I want hot-dogs for dinner."

"The doctor will come and see you in a couple of hours and will check that everything's okay then."

"Aw man," Kei pouted, crossing his arms. "But I'm bored."

"Ah, maybe this will help," Kenma suddenly cut in from the other side of the bed, tapping some things on his tablet before getting up and circling the bed to stop next to the pair. Tsukki expectantly raised his arms and Kenma handed him the tablet, all of the adults in the room grinning widely when he gasped in surprise.

"It's Yama!" he cheered excitedly. "Hi Yamaguchi!"

"I'll be back in a while to check up on him," the nurse chuckled, making her way to the exit.

"Thank you," Kuroo nodded at her, and looked down to where his son was waving enthusiastically at his best friend on the screen.

"Are you okay, Tsukki?" the boy on the screen asked, his voice slightly distorted by the transmission.

"Mhm." The blond nodded. "My daddy came to see me at the hospital, you know."

"That's so great!" the other child cheered. "Are you gonna come back to daycare today?"

"I dunno."

"No, probably not," Kenma answered for Kei, scooting into the frame. "He'll see you on Monday, okay?"

"Aw..." the two children whined simultaneously.

"But tell him the good news, Tadashi," Kenma prompted, a small smile on his face.

"Oh!" the other child perked right back up. "Noya from the other classroom gave out his birthday party invitations! You got one, Tsukki, and he said I could come, too!"

"Cool!" the blond cheered. "Dad, can I go?"

"Of course. I'll talk to uncle Sawamura about it, okay?" Kuroo nodded at him, and then leaned over to get into the frame of the tablet's camera. "Yamaguchi, would you like to come over to our house to play with Kei before the party? If you want to ask your mommy or daddy for me, I can take you and Kei to the party together."

"I really want to, Mr. Tsukki's daddy!" the other boy nodded furiously. "I'll tell my mommy to call you!"

"We can do that?" Kei asked, eyes practically sparkling in the light. "So cool! Thanks, dad!"

"No problem. We're gonna do a lot of cool things from now on," Kuroo grinned, basking in the aura of happiness exuberating from his son. "Everything's gonna be alright."

And if he wasn't believing himself up until then, then the tiny tears in the corners of Kei's wide, innocent eyes finally convinced him otherwise.

...-...-...-...-...-...-...

**Week 3- Saturday**

"Alright, so! You know the drill. Who wants to start the meeting?" Sugawara asked them when they all settled down finally. "Let's talk about... say... new developments in your lives and how you're handling them."

"Oh, I'll begin this one," Kuroo immediately volunteered, raising his hand. "Hello, my name is Kuroo Tetsurou, and I'm a fuck-up."

"Hello, Kuroo," the three others replied in a bored monotone, and clapped briefly before looking at one another and dissolving into laughter.

"Hello, my name is Bokuto Koutarou, and I'm a royal fuck-up," the white-haired man followed, getting more sarcastic clapping from the others in the circle (except Sugawara, the poor kid looked torn between wanting to quit and wanting to laugh).

"Hello, my name is Oikawa Tooru and I'm a really good-looking fuck-up!" the brunet followed, getting groans on top of the usual clapping.

"Hello, my name is Sawamura Daichi, and I don't know what the hell you guys are one, but I certainly am not a fuck-up, and you shouldn't tell yourselves that either, because it's gonna do nothing to dwell on your mistakes," Daichi finished off, looking proud of himself, especially when Sugawara groaned softly and mumbled something akin to 'god bless, a shred of seriousness around here'.

"Hello, Daichi," Kuroo finally grinned, clapping, and the two others joined in with a shrug.

"Also, my son is having his birthday party next Sunday and you're all obligated to come," Daichi added, getting their attention.

"This just sounds like one big ploy to get us to come over," Oikawa commented casually.

"Don't be an ass and get Noya a present. He wants a toy truck, the new Captain America figurine, and a hair dye job 'like Kenma', but I think we should all just stick to the stuff we can get from Toys'R'us."

They laughed, and there was nothing more incredible at that moment than to be able to enjoy the mundane little stories that reminded them all that life kept going, and that they made new memories every single day.

Kuroo intended to cherish every moment he spent with Tsukki from now on. Because more than the rent, more than the groceries, more than the never-ending hospital bills, nothing would ever be worth anything like the memories they made and that his son signed off with a smile.

...-...-...-...-...-...-...

**Week 4- Sunday**

"You're looking good today, Kuroo."

Making a small, startled noise, Kuroo turned to face the newcomer, who only ended up being Daichi heading over with a cup of soda for each of them. He accepted the drink (sadly non-alcoholic) from his friend and clinked their plastic cups together before taking a sip.

"It's nice to know my unique qualities are being appreciated," he quipped, leaning against a lamppost as they both watched the children playing in the park.

"Funny. But I mean it. You look a bit... lighter."

"It's cause my wallet's so empty," Kuroo groaned, ruffling his hair.

"And...?"

"And my schedule is, too," Kuroo completed off with a knowing smile. "I'm down to working 40 hours a week. It's actually working out pretty well."

"40 hours is still more than the average, but you know what? It's not 60, and so for that, you get a gold medal."

"How about a shot of whiskey instead?" Kuroo grinned, laughing when Daichi rolled his eyes.

"Hey!" The sound of a new voice calling out to them prompted them to turn, only to see Bokuto and Oikawa heading towards them.

"Yo," Daichi greeted the newcomers, who, as soon as they got close enough, clinked their bright red plastic cups and drank to the health of their entire group.

"How's it going?" Bokuto asked first, bumping his fist with Kuroo on the side.

"So far so good. Nobody's fallen off any swings yet," Daichi shrugged casually, all of them glancing to the children running around on the playground, shouting and giggling wildly.

"And how does Yuu feel about his party so far?" Oikawa hummed good-naturedly, fondly looking over at his son, who was trying to keep up, waddling behind the energetic birthday boy.

"He thinks it's pretty cool, but keeps asking me if someone will pop out of his birthday cake to sing him happy birthday. Wish I didn't have to disappoint him," Daichi chuckled, all of them lapsing into a light round of laughter before falling back into silence.

"So how are things on your end, Kuroo?" Oikawa asked, as he'd been the most out of the loop from Kuroo's recent developments in the past week.

"Not that great, but not all that bad. I quit one of my jobs-"

"Finally!"

"-But it was the one that paid cash, so I don't know if I'm eligible for single parenthood support programs, since I'm technically only working 8 hours less than what I was working before."

"Sugawara said he's still working on it," Daichi reminded him. "He's gonna ask all of his professors for help, and he's got a couple of friends in law programs that are pretty good at reading contracts and finding loopholes."

"Man, Daichi, you sure know what Sugawara is up to, don't you?" Bokuto teased, but Daichi nodded with a quiet, fond smile, and none of them had the heart to tease him about it any further.

"And you, Bokuto?" Daichi asked to change the subject before he could begin blushing or anything of the like.

"I actually wanted to show you guys something. Especially you, Kuroo." Bokuto perked up at the sound of his name, and pulled his phone out of his pocket. "I found a really good apartment and I want you to tell me what you think of it." Scrolling for a while, he clicked on something and then handed Kuroo the phone, the three others crowding around him to take a look.

"Oh, I love that neighbourhood!" Oikawa exclaimed immediately. "It's really quiet, mostly old people and cafés on every street corner, but it has a really nice park with a pond and the people there are super nice."

"And is it close to, say, a subway station, a grocery store, and stuff like that?" Daichi asked, always business-like in his questions.

"Yup. Five minute walk to the subway, fifteen to a grocery store, forty-five minutes from the daycare but twenty minutes from the school I want to put Keiji in when he's too old for daycare," Bokuto explained proudly.

"I didn't even think you could plan in advance like that," Daichi whistled in admiration, half-joking and half-serious.

"Gimme some credit. This place is perfect," the white-haired man huffed amusedly. "So! Kuroo, what do you think?"

"It... looks great..." his friend muttered, still looking at the details of the apartment Bokuto had picked. "But, uhh... this is a two-bedroom apartment. Are you sure you're going to be able to afford it?"

"Ah, Kuroo. Always about the money," Bokuto sighed, and Kuroo couldn't help but feel a twitch of frustration at the comment. "Nope, can't afford it on my own. That's why I'm asking you first and foremost."

"Oh my god," Oikawa gasped. "Is this a marriage proposal?"

"Shut up, you idiot," Daichi hissed, punching Oikawa lightly in the arm, drawing a loud squawk from him.

"Kuroo, would you like to move in with me?" Bokuto asked, getting down on one knee, and obviously trying to hide his grin behind his hands.

"Bro..." Kuroo blinked in surprise, not knowing how to react to the proposal. On one hand, he'd only known Bokuto for 4 weeks, and already knew the good and the bad about him. But on the other hand, in terms of convenience, although the apartment was further from the daycare than where he lived now, it was also larger, would cost about the same per month, and rooming with another person who knew about parenting would do wonders as a backup plan for if he needed help with his son.

"Come on, Kuroo, don't leave me hanging..." Bokuto whined when Kuroo took too long to think it out, actually looking kind of dejected and insecure behind the pout he had on his lips.

"It's only been 4 weeks, bro... Don't you think we're moving this relationship along too quickly?" Kuroo finally decided to sigh dramatically, a small smile blooming on his face when he saw Bokuto's eyes light up instantaneously.

"Nope! No such thing as too quick! Besides, are you down for a rushed relationship, or an actual bed to sleep on rather than the couch?"

"I think the promise of a bed is what caught my attention. I'll see about moving out, and you see about moving in," Kuroo concluded, and when Bokuto stood up, they both fist-bumped enthusiastically.

"Oh man, this is gonna be great. Just like in that one movie... What was it called...?" he groaned, trying to think.

"Dumb and Dumber," Oikawa snorted, drawing a laugh from everybody in the circle at the sound of Bokuto's indignation.

"Dad," a small voice called from below waist-level, and they all turned down to see Keiji standing there, looking awkward.

"What's up, little man?" Bokuto asked, ruffling his son's dark hair affectionately.

"Are you and uncle Kuroo getting married?" Keiji asked in his usual monotone, looking kind of awkward with the thought.

"Yes," Oikawa snickered from behind them, but Daichi bopped him again, drawing another squawk out of him.

"Nope, no marriages here. But we are gonna live together!" he announced. "So we're gonna move into a new house in a new neighbourhood, and this time, uncle Kuroo and Kei are gonna live with us. Isn't that exciting?"

"So Kei is gonna play with me every day?" Akaashi asked quietly, bright eyes calculating.

"Yup. Why don't you go tell him that, too?" Kuroo suggested. "I'm sure both of you will be super happy to have a playmate all the time."

"Mhm," Keiji nodded enthusiastically, and hesitantly leaned forward to hug Bokuto's leg before running right back off.

"He's so precious, look at him," Bokuto swooned. "Look at that precious thing, I made it from scratch, guys."

"Ohhh boy. Someone's showing off now," Daichi rolled his eyes amusedly.

"Oi, oi, Daichi! Do you wanna move in with me?" Oikawa asked excitedly, only laughing when Daichi did a double-take.

"No way. You're irritating like... half the time."

"So mean!" the brunet pouted. "But it's okay. I'm keeping the special occasion of having a joint household for somebody else, anyway."

"Speak of the devil," Kuroo whispered to Bokuto, who followed his line of sight, and then the two of them snickered as they spotted someone head towards them, holding the hand of a small child waddling next to him.

"What are you two bird-brains laughing about?" Oikawa puffed out his cheeks. "When I move in with this person, it's gonna be the best thing that'll happen to me in my entire life!"

"I'm sure it will be, Oikawa," Daichi chuckled, not being able to hold his own amusement back, and then waved to somebody behind the brunet. "Oh, hey there, Iwaizumi. Welcome to the party."

And none of them knew whether the funniest thing was Iwaizumi's very apparent confusion, or the way Oikawa's face drained of all its blood in a second flat.

"Thanks," the other man replied a bit uncomfortably. "I really expect the invitation. Tobio's only been at the daycare for like... a couple of weeks or something like that, so this was a surprise."

"Yuu makes friends in the blink of an eye," Daichi laughed. "He wanted to invite so many people that we had to put an attendance cap."

"That's nice." The other father still seemed a bit awkward, so Daichi immediately went to his aid.

(Before Oikawa could say something stupid, almost as stupid as the stupid smitten look on his face that he probably should do a better job at hiding).

"Hello, Tobio," he greeted the black-haired child standing by his father's side, looking strangely diplomatic.

"Hello, Mr. Yuu's dad," the child replied, seeming a bit tense. "I got a present for Yuu."

"That's very nice of you, Tobio," Daichi grinned, taking the gift bag that the child was handing him. "But you know, you can call him Noya. He likes it when his friends give him a nickname."

"... Friends..." Tobio repeated under his breath, and suddenly, there was a determined look on his face (and he kind of looked like he was holding back a grin, what a cute child). "Got it!"

"Go say hi, Tobio, and remember to play nicely," Iwaizumi reminded him, fixing up the collar of his t-shirt before patting his back to prompt him to go. The child hesitated for a second, suddenly looking shy and embarrassed, but then nodded and jogged weakly towards a group of kids playing in the sandbox.

"So, how are you liking the daycare so far?" Kuroo asked, if only to draw the man's attention away from Oikawa, who seemed to be dangerously close to melting.

"It's pretty good. Nice organization and very convenient after-hours and weekend service," Iwaizumi shrugged. "The parents as well as the staff are nice, too."

"Yes we are," Oikawa sighed out, seemingly not even realizing what he'd said, so Kuroo took over for him again.

"Yup. My best friend's actually the one who does the weekends. He has a group to himself but most parents know him as the supervisor during gym time," he lapsed into the new topic, hoping to save his friend a little bit of dignity, at least.

"Kozume Kenma, right?" Iwaizumi nodded. "Tobio got placed in his group by chance, since one of the other kids got transferred to a higher-age group."

"Yup, that's him! He's really good at what he does, don't let the quietness fool you," Kuroo continued. "He's actually a nursing student, going into pediatrics, so little Tobio is gonna be just fine with him."

"That's reassuring to know," Iwaizumi smiled softly, and Daichi, Bokuto and Kuroo simultaneously thought they heard Oikawa sob a little bit. "So it seems like all of you are like... a gang of friends at the same daycare. You must know one another real well, huh."

"Not really," Kuroo corrected. "Kenma is my childhood best friend, so when he looked for an internship, I recommended him to the daycare's director, and he got it. But these three idiots and I met through a mandatory support group project at the daycare for newly single fathers, and we still haven't ripped one another's throats out, so I guess you could call us friends."

"Ah, I see," Iwaizumi nodded, actually sounding interested. "It's a small world to have everybody interconnected like this, huh?"

"It's our tiny little world with our tiny little children and I don't think any of us would have it any other way," Daichi piped in, getting a bunch of nods from everybody, except Oikawa, who just elected to let out a very long "yyyyep".

"Anyway, thank you for inviting Tobio. I support I should leave and come back to pick him up?" Iwaizumi asked after a few seconds of silence.

"No, no, stay!" Oikawa insisted, oddly enthusiastic at the thought, and his friends gave him sideways looks at his total lack of tact. Oikawa had always been better than that at public relations, so it was surprising to see him so imbalanced by one man.

(To his defense, Iwaizumi was really fucking hot. Arms like that should be illegal).

"I mean..." Oikawa caught himself, and finally, the three others saw the exact moment when nervousness left him, and his usual _je-ne-sais-quoi _clicked back into place. "We haven't seen you in the neighbourhood at all. Did you just move here?"

"Actually, yeah," the other man turned back towards them, and Kuroo had to commend Oikawa for being able to fix himself up in such little time. "The missus and I have been divorced for a long time, but since Tobio's finally going to daycare, we established that it would be better if we moved further apart, just so that Tobio could be close to a lot of different places, depending on where he's staying."

"You do weekdays and weekends?" the brunet asked as innocently as possible.

"I think that's what's happening right now. We used to do one week at hers, one week at mine, but since the daycare is closer to my new place, Tobio stays with me during the week most of the time," the man explained, surprisingly chatty when he wasn't being looked at like he was the reincarnation of Hercules or something.

(Too bad he didn't know Oikawa well enough yet to realize that the thinly veiled sparkle in his eyes meant just that. It was kind of awkward to the three others, actually, who knew exactly how Oikawa was feeling).

"That sounds like a good arrangement. And how do you feel about the neighbourhood itself?"

"Lots of kids and grassy areas, which is great for Tobio, I guess. I work downtown, so it's a bit of a stretch to get there, but it's fine on most days. Tobio has to be brought in early to the daycare because of it, though."

"That's why I never see you around!" Oikawa made a sound of realization. "I bring Shouyo in a bit later, since I don't work that far from the daycare."

"I'm gonna go start preparing the lunches for the kids," Daichi quickly excused himself, not wanting to be stuck in their conversation anymore.

"And I'll set up the picnic tables!" Bokuto did the same, eager to get away from the uncomfortable amount of adoration radiating from Oikawa.

"And Tsukki's playing with his EpiPen again, so I'm gonna go stop him," Kuroo rolled his eyes, spotting his son waving the 120$ medication around in the air and seemingly talking to Noya about it.

"Alright," Oikawa nodded good-naturedly, and then turned to Iwaizumi. "These guys are pretty cool, too. Have you met their kids? Lovely bunch..."

Kuroo rolled his eyes as Oikawa went on and on about stuff, and surprisingly, kept Iwaizumi's attention through it all. Instead, he headed over to his son, who was pointing to things on his EpiPen and talking.

"Kei," he warned as he walked closer and squatted next to him. "What have I said about playing with the EpiPen?"

"I'm not playing," the blond defended himself. "Noya wanted to see it, so I was explaining it to him."

"It's like my puffers!" Noya jumped in at the sound of his name. "Like the blue one. Sometimes, randomly, it gets really really hard to breathe, so I have to go to an adult with my puffer and it makes it easier to breathe."

"Kei's is a little bit different, but yeah, it's the same concept," Kuroo nodded.

"But mine is a needle, not a puffer," his son whined, looking miserably at the EpiPen. "Needles are scary..."

"It's not that scary," Noya crossed his arms. "You said... blue to the sky and orange to the thigh, right?"

"But it's scary because I have to give myself the needle if I don't find somebody else. I don't wanna give myself a needle," Kei huffed, and Kuroo patted his head sadly.

"There, there... It won't be that bad-"

"I'll give it to you," Noya volunteered. "I'm not an adult, but I'm four years old and you're three, so that means I have to protect you. So if you ever get scared of doing the needle to yourself, come and find me and I'll do it for you!"

Kuroo was left speechless at the display of maturity, and briefly turned to look in Daichi's general direction. The other dad was laughing light-heartedly as he spoke to Bokuto, and didn't seem to notice him, and Kuroo briefly wondered if he knew that his son had such a large heart for such a tiny body.

"Are you sure...?" Tsukki whined, looking at the EpiPen doubtfully. "If I don't get it, the nurse said it can be super dangerous. I don't wanna go to sleep like my mommy."

"No way! I won't let you sleep like that," Noya grinned widely. "It's the same thing with my blue puffer, so I know what you're talking about. That's why you gotta listen to me cause I'm saying that no matter what happens, you gotta trust your daddy to wake you up after."

"Noya..." Kuroo's eyebrows shot up to his hairline is surprise, and he was left speechless, doubly speechless when Tsukki seemed to accept that as an absolute truth and nodded.

"That's true. Dads are the best," Kei agreed quietly, and Kuroo couldn't hold the love in his heart ready to burst through into his ribcage.

"Okay, enough, you two," he sighed, drawing both of them into his arms in a tight hug that was probably more about him than about them. And yet, they didn't complain, merely giggled and put their arms around his neck and squeezed almost as tight as he squeezed them.

Finally, when he let go and let them step back, he tapped both of their noses affectionately, and smiled fondly.

"You've a very brave boy, Noya. Good job." He then turned to his own son. "You, too, Tsukki. You're very strong and I love you a lot. Now go put your EpiPen in your bag and go back to playing. Didn't Yamaguchi want to play tag earlier?"

"I wanna play tag!" Noya exclaimed, always ready to be distracted by the promise of games.

"Okay. Let's go play," Kei nodded quietly, and threw Kuroo one last glance before jogging off towards his backpack by the bench to leave his EpiPen in it.

Kuroo watched them run and return to the group of children swarming the park, and then stood up, taking a deep breath. The sky was bright and the sun was warm, and unlike the other icky days of spring, this one actually kind of felt like summer. It was nice.

He looked over to Daichi, who was happily taking care of his son's birthday party, his fourth despite all of the hardships they'd both gone through before. He looked blissful despite the odds. And then, Bokuto, who looked like he hadn't a care in the world, despite having every single problem in the world, and Kuroo admired the genuine happiness in his eyes when he glanced around him as if everything in this world amazed him. A bit further off, Oikawa was still talking to Iwaizumi, and even if Kuroo had originally been squicked by how head-over-heels the brunet was for the other man, now he could only look at them fondly and wish them all the best (and anyway, he still had a 10$ bet going on between him and Daichi on when they'd hook up).

And then him. He was out in a park enjoying a gorgeous, sunny Sunday with his incredibly supportive friends and his incredibly precious child, and it would've all seemed mundane to him if he didn't remember that a week ago, he was working the life out of his bones at this very time. He'd really missed a lot in the past ten months he spent with his head buried in work, and had almost forgotten how nice being alive really felt like.

But then he heard the children screech and laugh as they began their game of tag, and glanced once more at his imperfectly perfect friends, and found himself proud to have found his happiness despite having to fight against all odds to achieve it.

* * *

**Author's Note**

**They teach us in nursing school that children who are hospitalized can be really traumatized by the experience, so you can imagine how confused and scared Tsukki was, especially when he knew that his dad wasn't coming to comfort him. Also, the 4-5 year olds I worked with at the daycare knew what the word "death" meant, but didn't seem to understand it fully, so I think that since Kei was 2.5-3 years old when his mom died, Kuroo must have elected not to explain the concept of "death" to him and just stuck to "sleeping without waking up". **

**Not many notes this chapter. Everybody's heard of anaphylaxis so I won't go into that... Maybe Kuroo's work schedule, then? He worked 3 jobs, one of which paid cash (so he didn't pay taxes and so the gov't didn't know he was working. It's illegal), which landed him 60 hours of work a week. Which is terrifying. Most of us work 35-40 and it's exhausting. So by quitting the job that paid cash, he went down to 48 hours, and then reduced 8 hours off his two other jobs to stay at 40, although to the government, he's still registered as working 2 jobs, which is why he's worried about being eligible for financial assistance. Since their location is not established, I can't say what minimum wage would be, but in Quebec it's 10$/hour so you kinda have an idea what he's living on. **

**(Also, this chapter may or may not have been a subtle kick at governments that don't cover healthcare, because I think it's really fucking stupid to pay 4000$ just for someone to save your life. Canadian healthcare isn't perfect, far from it, but not getting any hospital bills, like... ever, is the greatest thing. And drugs are covered by insurance/the government, so healthcare is dirt cheap here, and as a healthcare worker in training, I'm appalled that some people have to pay so much for their healthcare. Also, EpiPens really do cost 120$. Not cool if you're not covered. ANYWAY. Parenthesis closed). **

**Anyway, I just kinda led into Oikawa's chapter, which is chapter 5, which will probably come on next Saturday because I'm swamped with studying and other stuff lately, and I really wanna finish a chapter of CML before posting another of AAO too. As always, if you have questions, you can always contact me on Tumblr (same URL as on here) or leave a review with all of your comments! Thank you so much, everybody (: **


	5. Week 5

**Author's Note**

**I'm always late it's not even funny. I was at a con on Saturday so I didn't have time to finish writing and post. To make up for it, here's a 19k word chapter. I'm very sorry. **

**By the way! If you haven't seen it yet, my friend drew fanart for chapter 2! If you check out chapter 2 ANs, there's instructions on how to access it. Otherwise, there's a direct link on the AO3 crosspost of this fic! It's really great and funny, please go take a look ;u;**

**The scene in Oikawa's apartment is actually adapted from a comic by muchinery on tumblr. If you read this fic on AO3, the direct link is in the ANs. **

**The IwaOi game in this chapter is strong. I characterized Iwaizumi a bit differently from canon to adapt him to this setting, so I hope you won't dislike him. Also, take a good look at all the differences between Oikawa and Iwaizumi, two divorced LGBTQ single fathers with a son each, and how they deal differently with things and how their lives are different. This fic is all about emphasizing the differences, and how unity can be achieved despite it all. **

**And yes, there are a couple of warnings for this chapter, but none as bad as chapter 3's. Again, keep reading this paragraph if you wanna be aware of the warnings that however may spoil the content of the chapter. So this chapter includes homophobia, mentions of severe child verbal abuse and occurrence of mild child verbal abuse, and has non-explicit almost-sex. Nothing mature, but shit's still going down, y'know? I'm just gonna write a little bit more here so that people don't accidentally catch their eye on a word in the warnings they'd been meaning to avoid, and I believe this should be enough. **

**Please enjoy!**

* * *

**Week 5- Tuesday**

Oikawa was many things, but anything less than fully supportive of his friends was one of the rare things that he was not (that was right up there with heterosexuality and being dislikeable).

(Although that last one might've been up for debate, sometimes).

"Are you sure you should be trusting us with this kind of information?" Kuroo asked in a voice broken by static, smirking, and the glint in his eyes was very similar to that in Bokuto's. Daichi's webcam was too low quality for Oikawa to make out anything but a tight-lipped expression on his face.

"Yeah, for all you know, we could steal your spare key and take a whole day to redecorate your house. Like… paint the walls orange and pink," Bokuto mused out loud on his small portion of the laptop screen.

"You wouldn't dare," Oikawa huffed indignantly, actually repulsed at the thought of having his apartment painted in such bright and mismatched colours. "Is this what I get for being so nice?"

"Well, the offer is very considerate of you," Daichi nodded pensively. "But are you sure it's safe to leave your spare key under the doormat? Anyone that lifts it or kicks it could have access to it."

"No but see," Oikawa began correcting him. "I stuck the key under the doormat and sewed a small patch over it, so you'd have to flip the mat over and cut through the fabric with something if you wanted the key. Nobody will ever think of that!"

"What the hell, you've got so much time to spare," Kuroo whined.

"I've just thought this through is all," Oikawa shrugged good-naturedly, and then his tone became more sober. "In case any of you have an emergency and need somewhere to go, you can come over, even without asking. I'm just that kind. But it's just for emergencies, alright?"

"Of course."

"Thanks!"

"Sweet!"

"Ugh… why do I have the feeling that I've made a horrible decision?" Oikawa groaned to himself, rubbing the tired lines out of his face.

"Don't worry," Bokuto assured him with a sly smirk on his face. "When we come over and replace all your blinds with shower curtains, we'll make sure they match the carpets."

He and Kuroo laughed simultaneously, Oikawa's microphone making feedback at so much noise at once, and the brunet promptly muted them for a second, just long enough to groan, and then let out a small, amused chuckle.

His idiot friends really were the best.

…-…-…-…-…-…-…

**Week 5- Wednesday**

When Oikawa went to pick up Hinata that evening, the children were not out in the gym with Kenma yet, and were still cleaning up in their classrooms. Glad to have caught his son at work, Oikawa just stood outside, spying through the glass lining the hallway into the colourfully decorated room, where the children were all rushing to put things back in their places.

Hinata was giggling as he waddled around to go put his puzzle set in its place, putting a hand in his mouth proudly when he was done. Their educator, a kind young lady named Yachi Hitoka, gently passed by and pulled his hand out of his mouth, and then went around to help the other children. Oikawa couldn't help but laugh when his son waddled to sit on the mat where all the other finished children were sitting, and popped his hand back into his mouth. He just hoped that when Hinata grew the last of his back teeth, he'd drop the habit.

When all of the children were seated, Yachi sat down with them and talked to them briefly about something or another, and the brunet just enjoyed the look of pure adoration on Hinata's face as he watched his teacher talk, as if he was hanging onto every single word that came out of her lips.

It made him wonder if his son would be okay without a female role model in his life at all. He really didn't want things to go smoothly now, only for him to start misbehaving more and more as he grew. Sometimes, Oikawa wondered if he was good enough to be a parent at all.

But then, Shouyo's gaze strayed from Yachi and incidentally landed on him, and Oikawa swore he saw a galaxy swell to life in the deep brown of his eyes at the mere sight of him. Hinata yelled out something excitedly, and Yachi turned to look at what he was pointing to, and Oikawa just smiled sheepishly at her, trying to apologize wordlessly across the window.

She just smiled and nodded pleasantly at him, and then turned to calm Hinata down, handling it marvellously. The same feeling of insecurity suddenly overcame Oikawa at the sight of her, a relative stranger, taking such good care of his son. He wondered if he'd ever be able to interact with his son that way.

After she was done talking, the kids all said something in chorus, and then stood up, heading for the door. They waited for Yachi to open it for them and then exited, all toddling towards the nearest washroom for their routine bathroom time before heading to the gym. Shouyo waved excitedly at him as he stepped out, and with a nod from Yachi, Oikawa entered the PIN on the double doors and entered the daycare area of the floor.

"Hello, sweetheart," he called as he stepped in, not surprised to have Hinata rush at him and plaster himself all over his legs. "Hello, Miss Hitoka."

"It's always Yachi to you, sir," the educator laughed sweetly.

"Then I must insist you call me Tooru."

"I'd rather call you Oikawa. Is that alright?"

"So formal, Yachi," the brunet laughed, lifting his son into his arms to kiss his cheek, drawing a giggle of glee from him. "So. How was today?"

"It was wonderful! Shouyo, why don't you tell dad what you did today?" Yachi suggested.

"I did a lot of things, Miss Yachi," Shouyo pouted, as if affronted by the question. "I played with Tsukki and Noya in the gym and then I drawed a picture with Inuoka, and at lunch I went and played with Ryuu and his class. They had a ball! And then I builded a spaceship with the Legos but Aone stepped on it and it was sad."

"Alright, alright, my fault for asking such a broad question," Yachi laughed, waving him off. "Shouyo told me he had to go use the bathroom today, and all three times he told me, we made it on time. Isn't that cool, Shou?"

"Mhm! I'm gonna stop wearing diapers soon," Shouyo announced proudly, and with reason. Oikawa was very happy with the progress he was making.

"That's great, sunshine," Oikawa kissed his cheek with an exaggeratedly loud smack of his lips, and Hinata half-giggled, half-groaned at it, opting to bury his face in the crook of his neck instead. "So hey, Yachi, is Shouyo the only one in his class who still wears a diaper?"

"For the most part, yes. All of the kids are fully potty-trained, but a few of them still wear diapers in case of a slip-up. But you shouldn't worry," Yachi reassured him, as if reading his mind. "Shouyo's showing great progress, and he'll catch up in no time. The range of age for potty training varies a lot, and it's not abnormal for him to wear diapers at this age, just slightly uncommon."

"Thank you, Yachi. You really do know exactly what to say," Oikawa chuckled, patting Hinata's head a few times before letting him down. "Alright, so I guess we'll be going to the bathroom and then we're going home early today."

"Aww," Hinata whined, slipping his hand into his dad's. "But I wanted to play with Tobio today. He said this morning that his daddy was sick so he'd have to stay with his mommy, but his mommy lives far away so he'd be alone in the gym until she comes to get him."

"Tobio's daddy is sick?" Oikawa frowned, genuinely concerned about the other dad.

"Oh yeah, nasty bug going around," Yachi hummed, butting into the conversation shyly. "Thankfully, none of the kids have it yet, and we've been making sure to prevent transmission by any means necessary, but a couple of the parents got it, and I guess Tobio's dad was one of the unlucky ones."

"Oh, I'd better be careful, then," Oikawa winced.

"Yep, nasty business. Fever, sore throat, throwing up, fatigue, the whole lot of unpleasant things."

"Poor Iwaizumi," Oikawa sighed, feeling his heart clench at the thought of the other dad lying in bed, feeling so miserable.

He should probably leave him alone until he recovered…

(Yeah. That wasn't happening).

"Hey Yachi, can you take Shouyo to the bathroom? I gotta talk to Kenma real quick," Oikawa suddenly announced, handing his son off to the educator, who threw him a look of confusion.

"Um… sure. I'll take him to the gym with the rest of the kids until you're done."

"I won't be long," Oikawa hummed, and headed off towards where he knew Kenma's classroom to be.

Kuroo's best friend was indeed in the classroom, texting whilst his kids, the same age group as Yachi's group, cleaned up their toys. Knocking lightly on the door, he grabbed the blond's attention before pushing the classroom door in.

"Yo, Kenma. Can I ask you something real quick?" he grinned brightly, the deadpan look on Kenma's face already telling him that Kenma had caught on.

"Oikawa. What is it?"

"I have a favour to ask you. A teensy-tiny favour," Oikawa began, glancing at Tobio, who was very diligently stacking his building blocks back into the box to put them away. "So I heard that Tobio's dad was sick and we're friends and I'd really like to pay him a visit but I kinda don't know where he lives so could you perhaps maybe please give me his home address, please?" he asked in a single breath, topping it all off with a large grin.

"No." Kenma raised a brow at him, and then lowered it, returning to his texting.

"Awww, come on," Oikawa whined softly. "Throw me a bone. I'm really worried about him!"

"If it's the same thing that Yamaguchi's dad got earlier this week, then he'll be fine by tomorrow. Don't make a big deal out of it," the blond sighed.

"Kenmaaaaaaa." Oikawa poked his shoulder. "I can't do this without you, please help me out here. I wanna go and tell him how well Shouyo is getting along with Tobio and how worried I am about him and I gotta know if he's gonna go to the park this Saturday or not!"

"Oh my god." Kenma looked 110% done with Oikawa's bullshit, and the moment he gave him that frown, the brunet knew he'd won. "If I gave you his address, would you swear not to tell anyone, and also to leave me alone?"

"Pinky swear," Oikawa nodded, satisfied.

"I'm only doing this cause Kuroo's treating me to dinner if he wins."

"If he wins what?" Oikawa asked curiously, but Kenma just clicked his tongue and grabbed a paper off his desk, flipping to a page and handing it to Oikawa.

Oikawa had his phone out and snapping a picture of the address in a second flat, all else forgotten.

"Thanks, Kenma," he grinned once he was done. "Also, do you think he'd like flowers? Like obviously, it'd be the 'get well soon' flowers, not like roses or anything... Or are roses good?"

"Oikawa."

"Hmm?"

"Get out."

"Right."

...-...-...-...-...-...-...

"We're not riding the subway today?" Hinata asked on their way out of the daycare, waddling lazily next to his dad, who had the biggest, most satisfied grin ever on his face.

"We're gonna ride it later," Oikawa assured him, leading him by the hand down the sidewalk. "For now, we're gonna go run an errand."

"Wow, an errand!" the child cooed excitedly. "What errand? Where are we going? What are we doing?"

"It's nothing much. We're just gonna go drop by the grocery store, and then walk to Tobio's daddy's house," Oikawa explained.

"But why?" Hinata frowned, uncomprehending. "Tobio is with his mommy because his daddy is sick."

"We're gonna go see Tobio's daddy, actually. To wish him a fast recovery." And also to see his goddamn, god-blessed face. But Shouyo was fourteen years too young to understand that.

"Oh, okay," Shouyo nodded, and put his hand in his mouth.

"Shou, don't eat your hand."

"Okay." He pulled it out promptly, and tugged on Oikawa's hand instead. "Dad, can I have a candy from the store?"

"We'll see when we get there, okay?" Oikawa sighed. There were a few seconds of silence between them, and then, Hinata tugged at his hand again.

"Dad, look at that squirrel!"

This was definitely going to be a long walk.

...-...-...-...-...-...-...

The store was the easiest bit. In retrospect, it hadn't been that bad to go up and down the alleys a hundred times before settling on a type of soup to get, and it hadn't been that bad to pull Hinata away from every brightly-coloured package there was on the shelves, and it certainly had not been that bad to try and control the small tantrum the child threw when Oikawa refused to buy him two types of candy.

Now, standing at Iwaizumi's door with Hinata in one arm and his paper grocery bag in the other, all of that seemed obsolete. Oikawa was pretty sure that he would die here before he even rang the doorbell.

"Dad, are you gonna knock?" Hinata asked idly, too busy sucking on a piece of candy to pay much attention to how mortified Oikawa looked.

"Yeah, just gimme a second," Oikawa nodded tensely, and took a deep breath. And another one. It wouldn't be that bad to show up at another person's (see: stranger's) house unannounced without them ever having told him where they lived, right? Right. Alright. He had this in the bag.

Oh. Speaking of bag. He had no hands to knock with.

"Dam-ng it. Dang it." Oikawa caught himself at the last moment, clicking his tongue.

"Daddy said a bad word."

"Yeah, sorry about that. Don't repeat it."

Except he really did not have any more hands to knock with. He'd have to put Hinata down and he didn't trust the little boy to stay put.

This really sucked. Oikawa should just give it up and return home.

Which was an option for about 4 and a half more seconds, before the door bolts suddenly clicked open, giving Oikawa a heart attack, and the door swung open, giving way to a very haggard-looking Iwaizumi bundled up in two hoodies and a scarf.

Oikawa just stared. And Iwaizumi just stared back.

More than mortified, Oikawa was absolutely downright buried six feet underground at this point.

"Hiya, Tobio's daddy," Shouyo waved clumsily, not feeling the awkwardness between the two adults.

"Hi," Iwaizumi replied cautiously, and despite the lower half of his face being hidden in the plush scarf, Oikawa could imagine the frown on his beautiful face.

"Hi."

They were silent again. Oikawa wondered how likely Iwaizumi was to forget the incident if he turned tail right this second and left in a sprint that would rival that of his high school track team's captain.

Whilst his adult brain did the math, Shouyo's childish brain did the talking.

"Everyone at daycare knows Tobio's daddy is sick, so my daddy wanted to come see if you were getting better," Hinata announced, apparently bored with the silence, and apparently a lot more talkative than usual when his father was at a loss for words.

"I... I see," Iwaizumi finally nodded slowly, his voice scratchy with whatever it is that he had. "Umm, well... Thanks, I guess...?"

"Oh, no problem!" Oh no. Oikawa could feel himself go on a nervous tangent and he was powerless to stop it. He was usually so good with people, but Iwaizumi Hajime just destroyed every coherent part of him. "I also stopped by the grocery store and picked up some pick-me-up essentials! You know, chicken soup and crackers, ice cream, some lozenges for your throat and painkillers, lots of orange juice and water and some Gatorade! You know, electrolytes, just in case you had, uhh... yeah, anyway! Just a bunch of stuff, just in case you needed them."

Iwaizumi just stared at him, and Oikawa broke a sweat, unable to meet his gaze. Suddenly feeling so awkward, he wondered what else to say, when he realized that Iwaizumi may be staring at the small bouquet of flowers sticking out from the brown paper bag.

Fuck. He knew the flowers were a bit much.

"Ah, haha, funny thing!" he immediately tried to correct himself. "These flowers? They apparently mean get well soon, and I figured that they might liven up your boring place a little bit. Look, they're primroses!" Oh good, now he'd gone and called the guy boring. He may at well just pick up his phone and start ordering a custom-engraved tombstone already.

Here lies Oikawa Tooru; oh my god did he try.

Iwaizumi just stared at him, and Oikawa had half a mind to just kick him or something, just to get a reaction out of him. Anything, from an invitation into his place to pulling out his phone to dial the police.

(Although he really would prefer the first, if he could pick).

"This is really weird," Iwaizumi finally began, eyeing him unsurely. "You're really weird. And kind of annoying."

Well. That was anticlimactic.

He probably also could have told Oikawa something he didn't already know.

"But... By any chance, are there any antacids somewhere in there?"

Oh, but perhaps not all was lost yet.

"Yep. Tums. A whole bottle of them."

"Oh, good," the other man sighed. "I was about to go out to buy some and just dragging myself out of bed was hell, nevermind walking down to the pharmacy."

"You should go back to bed, Iwa-chan," Oikawa prompted him, mostly out of force of habit. Contrarily to popular opinion, he really did care about the people he held dear to him. "You look really pale." Setting Hinata down, he also extended a hand to Iwaizumi's face, and surprised both of them when he actually touched his forehead. "You're super warm, too! You shouldn't even be up right now!"

"Geez, what are you, my mother?" Iwaizumi clicked his tongue, but lost the bite in his tone very quickly. "Whatever. I'll go back to bed."

"Here." Now that his other hand was free, Oikawa offered the paper bag to Iwaizumi, who reached out and accepted it, pulling it close to him. "You should really take care of yourself, Iwa-chan."

"Why do you call me that? And why are you doing this?" the other man groaned behind his scarf, as if trying to decipher Oikawa through the haze of his fevered brain.

(Good luck, Oikawa figured, since most people, himself included, had no idea what to make of him even with a lucid state of mind).

"We're friends, aren't we?" Oikawa smiled, answering both questions at once. "Don't think too hard about it, or you might actually just split your brain in half!"

"Oi, don't make me slam this door in your face." There seemed to be a missing bit of his sentence that would not have been omitted, had Hinata not been present, and casually digging through his tiny 'Cars'-themed backpack. Oikawa made a mental note to get Iwaizumi out someplace where the children were not around, just so he could hear every unfiltered thought coming out of this man's sinfully beautiful mouth-

Oh no. Now he was getting hot.

"Even though..." Iwaizumi continued, as if still disbelieving. "We met... three weeks ago? And we only see one another at the daycare, and sometimes at the park on weekends."

"So?" Oikawa shrugged pleasantly. "My best friends right now are kind of the same. I met them five weeks ago and regularly see them twice a week only. Otherwise, we count on having simultaneous time off work to organize playdates with the kids. It's not about quantity, but what you do with it!"

"Mhm."

(Okay, maybe Oikawa's analogy and Iwaizumi's tight-lipped hum hadn't helped the former cool down his flushed face).

"Anyway, so you totally get better quickly, and I hope to see you at the park this weekend!"

"Ah. Tobio's staying with his mother this Friday and Saturday." Iwaizumi shook his head. "So I won't be going to the park."

"Shame." Oikawa hoped that the soul-crushing disappointment he felt wasn't showing on his face.

"Here!"

It was a new voice that interrupted, and both adults looked down to about waist-level, where Hinata was brandishing a piece of paper at Iwaizumi. The latter looked at the child curiously, and then at Oikawa, who looked just as puzzled, before accepting the paper.

Oikawa scooted over just a bit to get a glimpse at it, and his heart was flooded yet again with fondness for his two year-old.

"That's a picture I drew for my daddy, but you can have it," Shouyo explained enthusiastically. "It's Tobio and me playing at the daycare, and daddy is right there to play with us." He pointed up, as if doing that made everything clearer. "See, there are smiles a lot. Everybody is very happy!"

"Oh." Oikawa noted the choked tone in Iwaizumi's voice, only since he'd become so accustomed to hearing it in his own voice. "It's... it's very nice, Shouyo, but..."

"It's yours because if Tobio is with his mommy a long time, you'll get lonely, so if you have this picture with you, you won't get lonely!" Hinata interrupted him with his proud explanation, practically beaming by the end of it.

And it didn't matter that the sun was a triangle and that the people were stick-figures and there were about seven blades of grass in total (one of which was in the sky for some reason?). It didn't matter that the drawing was so surrealistic that Salvador Dali would have trouble deciphering it. Nothing mattered but the fact that this tiny human, who was totally unrelated to Iwaizumi, had given him this token of his affection, and a very intimate one, at that, because he was concerned about his feelings.

Oikawa figured that he owed Hinata a trip to the ball pit after all this.

"Thank you," Iwaizumi finally smiled, kneeling down to pet Hinata's hair, and letting Oikawa get a glimpse of the heavenly, serene smile hiding behind his scarf. "You're very kind, Shouyo. I'm going to keep this so I don't miss Tobio, you, and your dad."

"No problem! Playing alone is no fun anyway," Shouyo explained, and Iwaizumi patted his head once more before standing up and facing Oikawa.

"He's a good kid." He paused for a second. "Take good care of him."

"I already do. He's my pride and joy," Oikawa bragged subtly. "Now. You take good care of yourself as well, alright, Iwa-chan? You gotta promise."

"Yeah, yeah, pinky promise," Iwaizumi rolled his eyes before realizing what he'd said out of force of habit, and ducking his face into his scarf in embarrassment. Oikawa just laughed, and soon, the blushes on both of their faces matched.

"So I won't see you on Saturday... Maybe next week?" Oikawa tried to give himself something to look forward to.

"Probably. I'll be better by the weekend for sure," the other man nodded.

"Great news!"

And suddenly, there was a burst of adrenaline that coursed through Oikawa's veins, and he felt bolder than usual. And he was usually very bold.

This could only end in catastrophe, or bliss.

"So if you're better by this weekend..." Oikawa bit his lip and only hesitated for half a second. "Do you think you'd like to grab coffee together on Saturday? I'll leave Shouyo with my friends, and we can go have a chat. I've got a lot to tell you about the neighbourhood and some really funny stories about the people who live around here, I'm really sure you'll want to hear them! Oh, and if you needed any tips for living, since I know we're kind of far away from downtown but there are a lot of hole-in-the-wall places around here that offer the same services so if you want-"

"Oikawa."

Iwaizumi's scratchy, amused, and yet definitely exasperated voice cut his nervous rambling off immediately, and Oikawa zipped his mouth shut. Instead, he diverted his gaze, and found his eyes going to Iwaizumi's slender fingers and the way they closed minutely over Shouyo's drawing as he formulated his words.

"I'd like that."

"Oh," Oikawa nodded understandingly, letting it sink in.

And then, it sunk in.

"Wait, what?" he asked, eyes snapping back up to Iwaizumi's pale, sickly face. "You want to?"

"I guess. My Saturday's empty, so I may as well get out a bit," Iwaizumi huffed as if uncaring, but Oikawa had dealt with his type before and absolutely loved how he could see right through them. There was a spark of curiosity in the other man's dark eyes, and Oikawa really wanted to find out what made him tick.

(In more than one sense of the term. God, this hallway is getting real hot real quick).

"That's great! It'll be fun, I know a great place," Oikawa assured him, humming as he pulled his phone out. "Wanna gimme your number? I'll text you the time and place tonight."

"Sure. But I'll be sleeping like a log tonight, and probably tomorrow. I'll answer whenever I think of it," Iwaizumi rolled his eyes and gave Oikawa his number, which the brunet dutifully saved under the contact name 'Thank you sweet baby Jesus' before storing his phone.

"Sounds like you'll be busy." Oikawa grinned, bending down and picking Hinata back up into his arms, ignoring the two year-old's babbling and pulling his hand out of his mouth. "I'll leave you to it, then?"

"Yeah." Iwaizumi fidgeted, stepping back a bit to grab a hold of the door. "Umm... thanks for all this, again. You didn't have to."

"But I did. That's what friends are for!" Oikawa dismissed him quickly. "Besides, you're not a single dad, but you're still raising a kid partly on your own, and trust me, I know how nice it is to get a break sometimes. So get better soon, and drink lots of water!"

"Just leave, would ya?" Iwaizumi grumbled, making Oikawa chuckle as he stepped back.

"I'm going, I'm going. I'll text you so you get my number, okay? Otherwise, I'll see you soon!"

"Yep," Iwaizumi nodded tensely, shutting his door slowly. "Bye."

On his way out of the apartment building, he put Hinata down and held one of his hands, using his free hand to quickly text to 'Thank you sweet baby Jesus'. By the time they reached the steps down to the subway, Iwaizumi had texted back, and Oikawa read the text once, and re-read it again on the subway ride, and re-read it when they got off and began walking home.

And he may or may not have pressed the phone to his heart a couple of times, too, just so he could feel like a teenage girl in one of those cliché romantic comedies. He didn't care. He was happy. He was very, very happy.

[**06:27PM**] From: User

To: Thank you sweet baby Jesus

"Iwa-chan! It's Oikawa~ Add me + gimme a cool name on your phone! Oh &amp; if you ever need anything at all, feel free to text or call. I'll text you later! Get better soon! (/^▽^)/"

[**06:35PM**] From: Thank you sweet baby Jesus

To: User

"wtv, your name is Oikawa and that's that. Also wth is up with that emoticon, stupid? Keep in touch for saturday. Night."

...-...-...-...-...-...-...

**Week 5- Saturday**

[**12:23PM**] To: Thank you sweet baby Jesus

From: User

"Iwa-chan! Sorry I'm gonna be a bit late, our group session ran a bit longer today. Left Shouyo w the guys and I'm heading over rn!"

[**12:23PM**] To: User

From: Thank you sweet baby Jesus

"How late? I'm there already."

[**12:24PM**] To: Thank you sweet baby Jesus

From: User

"Like ten mins? But you're early, were you lookin forward to seeing me? (๑ᴗ๑)"

[**12:24PM**] To: User

From: Thank you sweet baby Jesus

"Stop using dumb emoticons. Also I'm on time and you're late. So less texting more walking."

[**12:25PM**] To: Thank you sweet baby Jesus

From: User

"Roger that! You can order without me if u want."

[**12:25PM**] To: User

From: Thank you sweet baby Jesus

"No bc unlike someone here, I'm not rude. I'll wait."

[**12:26PM**] To: Thank you sweet baby Jesus

From: User

"Now that was rude! But I forgive you Iwa-chan. Seeya in like five mins! ＼(^▽^＠)ノ"

...-...-...-...-...-...-...

"Hey," Oikawa greeted as he walked over to the two-person booth where Iwaizumi sat alone, gazing out the window. The latter looked up when he was addressed and nodded at him as he slid into the seat facing him. "Sorry about being late. Kuroo -that's the bedhead one- was telling a really interesting story about getting vaccinations done for our kids and we're all due for one vaccine or another soon, so we stayed behind to talk a bit more about it."

"That's okay," Iwaizumi shrugged, and Oikawa was glad to note that the scratch of illness had disappeared from his voice.

"You've gotten better, from what I can see. That's good."

"Yep. The stuff you brought over helped me get my shit together until I felt good enough to go down to the pharmacy for some actual medication. Thank for that, by the way," Iwaizumi repeated.

"No problem! I'm glad I could be of service," Oikawa hummed pleasantly, feeling his heart flutter at the thought of having saved Iwaizumi some of the pain of being sick. "Whatever you had looked nasty anyway. There's no way I would've let you be miserable like that."

"I hope the kids don't get it," Iwaizumi huffed, and then raised his head as the waitress approached from behind Oikawa.

"Hey there, boys," she greeted them rather informally, tucking a piece of her short blond hair behind her ear and pulling out a notepad and a pen. "How y'all doing today?"

"We're doing good. How about you, Saeko?" Oikawa asked pleasantly, twisting around to look at her, and grinned when she took a second to recognize him.

"Heyo, if it isn't single daddy!" she grinned. "Haven't seen you in a while. How's Hinata doing?"

"He's fine, growing up by the day. You know how they are," Oikawa chuckled. "I didn't know you worked this shift."

"And I didn't recognize the back of your head," she laughed. "But yeah, I've been switching things around so I can babysit Ryuu on weekdays and work weekends instead. Mom's company got a new contract so she's been out on evening meetings a lot, so I'm taking care of my baby bro now."

"I hope that's working out for you," Oikawa smiled at her. "But hey, anyway. Saeko, meet Iwaizumi Hajime. He moved to the neighbourhood not long ago and his son, Tobio, just began attending the daycare at the community centre. He's almost Hinata's age."

"Nice to meet you," the waitress bowed, and Iwaizumi inclined his head in response, looking kind of awkward, almost like a third wheel. Oh, if only the poor man knew that he was the only one that mattered to Oikawa...

"Likewise," Iwaizumi replied, always as diplomatic.

"Tanaka Saeko is the older sister of one of the kids at daycare, around Nishinoya's age -that's Daichi's, you know, the constantly constipated-looking one?-. She used to be Shouyo's babysitter when my ex and I couldn't be around to take care of Hinata, up until recently when we divorced, and Saeko returned to college," Oikawa continued his introduction.

"How're you holding up?" Saeko asked, her tone implying that she knew a lot more than she let on, and Oikawa knew that she was aware of the truth. However, Iwaizumi was not, and he wasn't keen on letting him know just yet.

"I'm doing better," he replied vaguely. "But yeah, so since Iwaizumi is new around here, I figured I'd treat him to some of your wonderful cheesecakes and a cup of coffee and tell him a bit about these parts."

"Iwaizumi, if you don't hear the story of old lady Smith by the time you get to the bottom of your cup of coffee, give Oikawa a kick. You absolutely have to hear this one," Saeko grinned, and Oikawa was thrilled that Iwaizumi dropped some of his awkwardness to roll his eyes in exasperation instead.

"I'll add it to the list of reasons I could kick Oikawa for."

"So mean, Iwa-chan!" Oikawa crossed his arms, pouting. "Saeko, would it be possible for you to accidentally mix up the salt shaker and the sugar while preparing his coffee?"

"I take my coffee black," Iwaizumi raised an eyebrow, a smug smirk playing on his lips. Oikawa absolutely loved it.

"Alright, alright. So I'm guessing it's gonna be one black coffee, and one diabetes in a cup, as per usual, right?" Saeko asked, scratching some notes down on her pad.

"Yep! And two slices of today's cheesecakes. Which ones do you have?"

"Lemon and tiramisu. You missed double chocolate- that was yesterday," Saeko snapped her fingers in mock disappointment.

"Awww. Well, one slice of each, please!" Oikawa ordered.

"And that'll be together?"

"Yep!"

"No."

Silence.

"Iwaizumi, I said I'd be treating you," Oikawa pouted, not up for this kind of argument right now. "Come on, it's my treat."

"No, that's fine. I'm perfectly capable of paying for myself," the dark-haired man insisted. "Two tabs, please."

"Saeko, don't give him what he wants!"

"Oikawa, you don't have to pay for me," Iwaizumi told him, his voice a bit frustrated from having to fight about the topic, but Oikawa did not give in, and puffed his cheeks instead.

"Iwa-chan, I don't have to, but I want to! Like I told you the other day... that's what friends do." Except maybe insisting on covering a friend's tab went past the scope of simple friendship... but hell, he'd known the guy for three weeks. They were nothing more than friends for now. "Come on... this is my gift from me to you to welcome you to the neighbourhood."

"I moved two months ago, you're a bit late," Iwaizumi protested weakly, but then averted his eyes. Was that the hint of a blush that Oikawa saw spreading across the bridge of his nose? "Fine. But just this once."

"Yes!" Oikawa cheered, much to Saeko's amusement.

"Just this once!" Iwaizumi snapped, getting up from the table. "Don't get cocky about it."

"No worries, Iwa-chan. Next time, you'll cover the tab!" Oikawa joked without really thinking about it, and then blushed himself when he realized what he'd been insinuating.

"Urgh..." Iwaizumi averted his eyes, definitely embarrassed now. "Sorry, Miss Tanaka, but could you point me to the washroom please?"

"Saeko," the blond corrected, hiding her wide grin behind her hand. "By the counter, there's a small corridor, go to the end and it's the door to your left."

"Thanks." And, nodding, he was gone in a flash.

Oikawa counted about 6 seconds before he allowed himself to grin so wide that his cheeks hurt.

"Urghhhh."

"Is he anybody I should know about?" Saeko asked, raising an eyebrow suggestively at Oikawa. "You are so smitten, it's not even funny."

"Can you blame me? Have you seen him? Guns of steel and heart of gold, I swear to god," Oikawa practically swooned.

"Are you dating?" the blond asked curiously, pulling a rag from her belt and wiping the table to give her an alibi to lean towards Oikawa and keep their conversation quiet.

"No, not yet. I met the guy three weeks ago. I wanna take things slow and think it through," the brunet sighed. "But man, he's the perfect guy. Smart, handsome, great with kids, terrible and yet terrific sense of humour, kind of awkward, but the cute kind of awkward, and he's really a big sweetheart. I want his children, Saeko. I will willingly bear his children, I'm not even kidding."

"Whoa, Oikawa," the waitress chuckled. "I thought you were taking things slow."

"I am. I'm still at the 'look but don't touch' stage. That man is a work of art."

"Okay, you need to shut up, first of all," Saeko laughed again, unable to contain her amusement at how ridiculous her friend and former employer was being. "And second of all, you don't sound like you're actually willing to take it slow."

"No, I'm definitely not gonna rush into anything," Oikawa shook his head, voice dropping a notch lower to indicate that he was being serious. "Mostly for Shouyo. He likes Iwaizumi, but seeing him once in a while is different from him becoming daddy's new lover. And besides, I gotta explore the terrain a bit more before going in. I know Iwaizumi's divorced, but that's really all I know about him. He might not even be into dudes."

"I will pray for you if that does turn out to be the case," the waitress shrugged, stepping back and putting her rag away. "But y'know what? Either way, he looks really sweet. And you two are cute together. Do your best, and even if it doesn't work out, keep him as a friend. He's a good guy, I can tell."

"Like you're a good judge of character," Oikawa crossed his arms smugly, squawking in amusement when Saeko grabbed the small menu card off the table and smacked him with it. "Hey, hey, no violence in the cafe!"

"I'm gonna spit in your diabetes, just you watch me," the blond grinned as she backed away from the table.

"You wouldn't dare!"

"Oh, I would!"

Chuckling, Oikawa let her go off to prepare their order, and leaned back into his seat, taking this moment of peace and quiet to think about things.

Namely, what to do about Iwaizumi.

Who, just like some kind of devil, suddenly seemed to reappear in the seat across from him as soon as his thoughts turned to him.

"Welcome back. Saeko's getting our orders," Oikawa informed him, trying to normalize the exchange so that he could make the awkward one of them a little less awkward. "You'll see, the cheesecakes here are to die for. And since this place is kind of in the middle of the community, a lot of people meet up here all the time. So you might often see some familiar faces if you swing by."

"I really only know you, some parents from the daycare, and your three friends from the support group, though," Iwaizumi mused out loud, apparently more at ease with the neutral choice of topic.

"Oh, you'll get to know the faces around here soon enough. We might live in a big city, but this community is pretty tightly knit, so it's kind of like a small village on the outskirts of the city," Oikawa reassured him. "Anyway, some of these faces are definitely worth knowing. Let me tell you about Mr. Nekomata, the landlord the apartment above this cafe, and the cafe itself. He's really nice, but he's always got this look on his face like he knows something you don't. If you get on his good side, he'll treat you like a grandson and he'll let you take home the remnants of cheesecake at the end of the day."

"And let me guess," Iwaizumi continued, mildly entertained by the conversation. "There's a catch to getting on his good side?"

"You bet'cha." Oikawa nodded. "He's retired, you know how those old folks are... so the only reason why he'd even remember your face is if you showed him a cat. And then, he'll remember you from the cat you brought him."

"A cat," Iwaizumi deadpanned. "Like... an actual pet cat?"

"Yep," Oikawa chuckled. "Like you put a cat in a carrier and bring it over when he's around and let him pet it, and voila. Instant unlimited cheesecake and grandfather figure for the rest of your life. Kuroo brought one over, but ended up loving the cat too much himself, and refused to hand it over, apparently. So now, Nekomata knows him as the 'cat thief'."

"Oh, wow," Iwaizumi raised an eyebrow, slightly amused. "And you?"

"I brought him a tortoiseshell once that I found wandering on the streets once. He calls me Oikawa Tortie now."

Iwaizumi may or may not have muffled a chuckle behind his hand. Oikawa may or may not have felt his heart beat hard enough to burst out of his chest.

Saeko came back with their order soon after, and the understanding that dawned on Iwaizumi's face at the sight of Oikawa's drink hinted that he hadn't really understood what Oikawa and Saeko had referred to as 'diabetes in a cup'.

It really wasn't that bad. White chocolate mocha with a shot of espresso and a pump of vanilla, topped with whipped cream and chocolate syrup. People made a big deal about everything these days, and so he figured he may as well enjoy the sweetness of the moment regardless.

They were there for a while, one topic of conversation giving way to another in a continuous chain that was forced at first, but soon became more natural to the two of them.

Oikawa discovered that Iwaizumi wasn't much for sweets, and suggested he have a cheese scone instead, which he loved. He then admitted that he was a sugarholic, and the look on Iwaizumi's face, directed at his empty cup of diabetes, said that he'd deduced that much already.

He found out that Iwaizumi liked sports, but never played one in particular. He told Iwaizumi's he'd get him and the other guys together at some point to play something (volleyball sounded good, since Bokuto used to play it in college). He also found out that Iwaizumi drove a car, an old one he'd bought off his parents when he'd gone to college. He then found out that Iwaizumi was doing online physics and mathematics courses so that he could apply for engineering next fall.

He found out that Iwaizumi was divorced, and had been for about a year already, but was on good terms with his ex-wife (a fact that both made him bitter and jealous, and maybe a little bit afraid). He learnt that Tobio was very good with his fine motor control, which was surprising in a 22 month-old like him, but that he wasn't very good with academic subjects like numbers and letters. He found out that Iwaizumi worked as an office clerk during weekdays in a company specialized in aerospace R&amp;D, but that he disliked the monotone quality of his job.

He found out that Iwaizumi Hajime had the biggest heart in the world, loving his family and helping others and supporting his loved ones through everything that befell them during the hard moments in life, even when he was going through a rough patch himself. And every word that came out of Iwaizumi's mouth, as disinterested as they sounded, meant the world to Oikawa. Iwaizumi was perfect on so many levels.

Time passed without Oikawa ever even realizing it. Three coffee cups and two hours later, he remembered to check his watch, momentarily breaking away from the bubble of bliss that had encapsulated him and Iwaizumi, isolating them from the rest of the world. Still, as happy as he was, leaving Shouyo alone with Kuroo and Bokuto for too long sounded like a bad idea (though Daichi would probably stop them from doing something dumb, like letting his kid draw on the walls... right?), so he figured he should probably cut it off here for now, and return home to rest a bit before going to pick Hinata up from whoever's place they were at.

Iwaizumi seemed to have the same train of thought, checking his phone and downing the last of his coffee rather conspicuously. Oikawa figured it was time to leave things, for now at least.

"Iwaizumi-"

"Oikawa-"

They both stopped as their respective names came out at the same time, and Oikawa chuckled sheepishly.

"Sorry, I cut you off. What were you saying?" he asked softly.

"Oh, nothing. I was just gonna say that I appreciate the invitation, but that I'm slowly gonna head home. Tobio's sleeping at mine tonight, and my ex is bringing him after dinner, so I may as well go and get my cleanup done, slowly but surely," Iwaizumi explained, putting his phone away.

"That's fine. I think I'm gonna go have a nap at my place before going to pick Shouyo up," Oikawa replied. "It was lots of fun doing this with you, Iwa-chan. I'm glad you gave it a chance!"

"Well, at least now I know not to wear white sneakers when Mrs. Thompson on Main street is out working on her garden, lest she set fire to her plants, or something," Iwaizumi chuckled. "You've given me more or less vital information about living in this neighbourhood, so I suppose it wasn't a huge waste of time."

"Way to make it sound like you didn't have any fun, which you totally did, you liar," Oikawa huffed, pulling out his wallet and setting a few bills on the table, sure that it would cover the bill without even getting it in the first place. Or at least, it looked impressive to Iwaizumi, and if he was missing any money, Saeko would not hold back on chewing him up later.

"Well... it passed the time," Iwaizumi pouted, quite adorably at that, too, "So I guess it wasn't that bad."

"I'm flattered," Oikawa grinned, and waved Saeko goodbye as they exited the cafe. "So. Heading home right now?"

"Yep. Do you need a lift?" Iwaizumi offered, brandishing his car keys. "Like I said, not the best car, but it gets the job done."

"Anything to get out of taking the subway right now," Oikawa laughed. "Thank you. I don't live too far from you, so I'll direct you where to go."

"Sure."

Following Iwaizumi into the small parking lot, Oikawa quickly located the car and went around it to stand at the passenger door until Iwaizumi unlocked it for him. The inside of the car smelled like Iwaizumi's cologne and cheap leather, with just a hint of fast food, and somehow, it was the most alluring smell in the world to Oikawa. It said a lot about his companion, if nothing else.

"Sorry about the mess. I don't usually have other people in my car," Iwaizumi apologized, putting away some papers on the dash and turning back to put his wallet into the backpack in the back seat, but Oikawa couldn't see the mess he was talking about at all, which made him that much more endearing.

"It's fine. Once you get kids, the definition of a 'mess' kinda changes, so you're good," Oikawa chuckled, drawing a chuckle from Iwaizumi as well.

"Touché. Did you buckle up?" he asked, apparently unaware of the caring tone that slipped into his voice as he himself snapped on his seatbelt.

"I did, thanks," Oikawa nodded, more and more in love with the guy with every word that came out of his mouth. The guy wasn't just good with kids, he was practically Mary Poppins. Too bad his kid himself was a little shit.

"Alright. So just tell me where to go." Iwaizumi checked his rear view mirror and then backed out of the parking spot.

"Just drive down towards your place for now," Oikawa instructed him.

There was a small silence as Oikawa allowed Iwaizumi to pull out of the lot into the street, but the brunet did not let the lack of conversation stand. After all, every moment spent with Iwaizumi was something he cherished.

"I'm glad you agreed to come out with me today," he began once more, texting Daichi briefly to inquire about their whereabouts and then setting his phone down in the cup holder between the driver and the passenger seats. "It's relatively hard to have some time to myself, what with being a single dad with a bundle of sunshine that needs me 24/7."

"Understandable. But... I don't understand one thing." Iwaizumi seemed to hesitate, keeping his eyes on the road. "You said you're divorced... but didn't your ex want split custody of Shouyo? Mine insisted on split custody from the first moment onwards, and I mean... hating your guts is one thing, but she doesn't hate her son, does she?"

"She was a bit weird about the whole thing," Oikawa laughed a bit uncomfortably. "She practically told her lawyer that she wanted nothing to do with Shouyo and me both, so the case was settled quickly."

"And you said that was... about three months ago?"

"Yep. The process was finalized about three months ago, but it started a few months before that," Oikawa clarified. "It's been about half a year since things started going down the gutter."

"That fast?" And there was that confused frown again. "You never really told me why you were divorced, now that I think of it. I told you that my divorce was over financial problems, and it was a year in the making, but I'm wondering what yours was about, for everything to have happened so fast. If you don't mind me asking, of course."

"It's... complicated," Oikawa winced, the bitter memories ruining the sweet aftertaste of the cheesecake still lingering on his tongue. "I, uhh..."

"I don't mean to pry," Iwaizumi quickly interrupted, as if nervous. "Sorry. You don't need to answer."

"No, no, it's okay," Oikawa waved him off, not wanting things to get awkward between them. However, he wasn't sure if he wanted his companion to know the reason for his divorce, since the awkwardly-timed confession could lead to some misunderstandings.

He just crossed his fingers for Iwaizumi to be sharper than he gave him credit for, and jumped in with both feet.

"I came out to my ex about half a year ago and she wasn't really happy with that," he confessed, suddenly self-conscious. He turned his gaze out the window when he felt Iwaizumi glancing over at him, not wanting to see the look in his eyes.

"Came out, like... Told her you were gay?"

So straightforward. Oikawa shivered, biting his lip, and wringing his hands in his lap nervously. Would Iwaizumi be disgusted? Angry? Awkward? Condescending? He couldn't place the tone of his voice, and not looking at him only made the mystery that much more stressful.

"Yeah," he swallowed thickly. "She wasn't down for a gay husband and asked for the fastest divorce she could get."

"Oh."

Fuck, there he'd gone and made things awkward. Just the thing he'd wanted to avoid. And they'd been having such a wonderful day so far. Oikawa seemed to have a talent for ruining things by not being able to keep his mouth shut and keep his personal business a secret. First, his wife, and now his prospective boyfriend... Who was he going to drive away next?

"Well," Iwaizumi finally restarted the conversation a few moments later, his voice sounding lower and just a tad bit more pensive. Oikawa hazarded a glance at him, and noted how unaffected he seemed to be by the confession, except for the light blush tinting his cheeks (though that might've been the sun on his face). "It's her loss, I suppose."

"W-What?" Oikawa spluttered, obviously not expecting him to say that. In fact, he'd been expecting him to say everything but that. The words were so kind and non-judgmental that he found himself moved to tears by the simple sentence.

"I mean..." Iwaizumi seemed to be looking for his words as well, still stubbornly refusing to look at Oikawa even though the latter was staring wide-eyed at him. "She gave up a really brave and strong husband and an adorable son over something as trivial as sexuality. Like I get how that wouldn't have worked between you two, but there are more, uhh... friendly alternatives to divorce. So it's her loss in the end."

"Iwa-chan..." Oikawa couldn't help but crack a joke to help soothe his nervousness. "I didn't know you thought I was brave and strong! That's sweet of you."

"Shut up. Forget what I said. You're also kind of annoying and your texting style is really unpleasant," Iwaizumi huffed just as quickly, very conspicuously looking into his mirrors to avoid looking at Oikawa, who just laughed at how obvious he was being. There was no way he'd forget any of this, not when every single word meant so much to him.

"At least I'm not a big bully like you. Meanie," he blew him a raspberry, grinning wide when Iwaizumi finally turned to glare at him.

"Oi, I'll open the door and push you on the sidewalk."

"You wouldn't! Take a left at the next light, by the way."

"Don't try me," Iwaizumi warned, his tone lacking just a bit too much threat to be convincing.

"Oh, but I'm always ready to try new things," Oikawa hummed, his confidence bolstered by Iwaizumi's acceptance. "You gotta do things outside your comfort zone, Iwa-chan. Right here, and then right at the second stop sign."

"Like push you out of my car?" A small smirk was ghosting on the other man's lips and Oikawa loved the familiarity of the whole situation.

"No, like inviting me out like this more often!"

"We'll see about that. I can't guarantee I'll be able to bear your attitude for more than 30 minutes at a time."

"Well then," Oikawa huffed in mock-offense. "After all the effort I make to tolerate your presence! You really are mean."

"You don't just tolerate me, Oikawa," Iwaizumi smirked arrogantly, and Oikawa felt a twinge of heat jolt up his spine. "You're practically clinging to me. Kind of like a baby, actually. You're a big baby, so I guess it's fitting."

It was surprising how they fell so comfortably into a pattern of familiar teasing, as if in some past life they'd been the best of friends. Oikawa was shocked at how willing Iwaizumi was to be so informal with him, too, seeing as he'd taken him for the more uptight kind of guy. And seeing as they'd basically known one another on and off for three weeks and had only just spent a few hours marathoning their life stories.

(It had most definitely felt like a date. But Oikawa wasn't ready to say that out loud, lest he ruin the amicable moment they were sharing).

By the time Oikawa had found a weak reply to Iwaizumi's poorly-covered up insult, they'd made it in front of his flat, with the telltale white and teal steps welcoming him back to an empty home, and he had the other man stop the car.

"Well, guess I win this round, since you have nothing intelligent to say anymore," Iwaizumi smirked at him as he parked, then turned off his ignition, and leaned back into his seat.

"Rude. I'll get you next time," Oikawa mumbled, still hopeful. And he positively lit up when Iwaizumi raised a brow challengingly at him, as if daring him to try.

"Nah, I'm still gonna win, the next time and the time after that and all the times you try and out-sass me."

So there would be next times, and many of them, from the sound of it. Oikawa was on cloud nine.

"I'll take you up on that, Iwa-chan," Oikawa smirked cockily right back at him, daring him to try something, anything.

They both eased themselves into a small moment of silence, just to wind down from their friendly (not so friendly to outsiders listening in) conversation, before Oikawa finally unbuckled himself to get out.

"So... thanks for the ride, Iwaizumi," he nodded at him. "Today was really fun."

"Thanks for inviting me out. I probably needed to clear my head more than I thought I did at first. Kids and stress and getting sick kinda piled up so I needed to wind down and get ready to return to routine tonight. So yeah," his companion nodded, finishing off a bit awkwardly.

"No problem! And you gotta admit, those cheesecakes were worth it," Oikawa teased gently.

"Yeah, they were pretty good. Though I still don't know how your heart hasn't stopped from the amount of sugar you ingested throughout those few hours," Iwaizumi huffed amusedly.

"Oh, it got used to it after a while," Oikawa waved him off. "Plus, it's not like I take my coffee like that every day. Usually in the morning, any coffee is good coffee to me."

"Not a morning person, huh?" Iwaizumi chuckled. "That makes one of us."

Oikawa rolled his eyes and smiled softly, loving how casual their conversation had become. Discussing morning habits like this was such a domestic thing to do, it warmed his heart. He really liked Iwaizumi, probably more than he should at this point, but he couldn't help it. Be it infatuation or an actual attraction to the guy, he was happier than he'd been in a long time, and he wouldn't trade this moment of peace for anything in the world.

"Alright, well..." Iwaizumi began again, suddenly seeming loath to speak. "I'm in no hurry at all, but weren't you going to take a nap before going to get Shouyo?"

"Shouyo can wait," Oikawa replied too quickly to be politically correct, and then coughed to cover up the embarrassment. "I mean... he's probably with the guys and their kids at one of their houses, and Kuroo hasn't texted me in a panic so far, so I suppose all is well. But... yeah, I should go."

"So I'll see you at the daycare? Or around, somewhere?" he asked, and if Oikawa spent one second too long blinking, he could imagine, behind his closed eyelids, that Iwaizumi actually sounded hopeful.

"For sure. Otherwise, I'll text you. If you're into good food, there's also a few shady-looking spots in the neighbourhood that actually have the greatest staff and amazing food, so I'll take you to one of them," Oikawa suggested, unlocking his door.

"That sounds fine," Iwaizumi nodded. "Enjoy your weekend."

"You, too, Iwaizumi." And there they went, separating with reluctant goodbyes tinted with a hint of yearning. Or maybe Oikawa was just being too hopeful.

Before he could think too hard about it, he stepped out of the car, and briefly waved before closing the door and heading towards his flat.

He pulled his keys out of his pocket, rifling through them until he found his front door key, and was almost at the top of the winding staircase leading up to his flat when there was the sound of a car door closing behind him.

Unable to hold back the curiosity, he stopped his ascent and turned around, heart fluttering when he saw Iwaizumi come out of his car, jogging towards him. Had he come to escort him up? Call him back? Beg him to never let him go? Ask him out? Kiss him? The possibilities were endless. Oikawa almost forgot to breathe.

"Oi, stupid!" However, as soon as the ticked off words left the other man's mouth, Oikawa deflated, recognizing that he wasn't there for any kind of chivalrous purpose. "You forgot your phone in my car!"

"Oh!" Oikawa gasped, palpating his pockets briefly and realizing that he had indeed forgotten to take his phone back from the cup holder he'd left it in. He went down the stairs a little bit to meet Iwaizumi halfway, and took his phone back from him gratefully. "Thanks. Didn't realize I'd forgotten it."

"Be careful with that," Iwaizumi clicked his tongue. "Good thing I saw it before I left."

"Thanks," Oikawa repeated, clicking it on to check for any messages. There was a small icon in the notification box that indicated that he'd received a new text, but he figured he'd check it later, since he didn't wanna miss a single moment he spent with Iwaizumi. Instead, he slipped the phone into the back pocket of his skinny jeans and then smiled at him. "So..."

"Yeah..." Iwaizumi muttered, suddenly seeming embarrassed. A fresh breeze blew, ruffling their hair and the new leaves blooming on the trees lining the peaceful, quiet street, and Oikawa again appreciated the serenity of the moment. They were standing so close, one step apart, and the brunet enjoyed their proximity, even if Iwaizumi wasn't seemingly willing to look him in the eye at this distance.

"Iwa-"

"Oi-"

They interrupted themselves at the same time, and then shared a small snicker at having said their names at the same time again.

"You go first, this time," Iwaizumi smirked softly at him, making Oikawa's heart skip a beat again. It wasn't fair for a guy to be so charming and alluring at the same time. It wasn't fair for him to have this effect on Oikawa.

(He kind of felt like he was in some kind of cheesy romantic comedy and he _loved it_).

"Ah, no, it's okay..." Oikawa averted his eyes, feeling heat rise up to his face. He was so confident before, but standing so close to Iwaizumi seemed to sap his will away. "I was just gonna ask... something. But nevermind."

"Hmm..." Iwaizumi hummed, and Oikawa watched from the corner of his eyes as he swallowed thickly, Adam's apple bobbing deliciously as he did so. "Umm... yes."

"... Yes?" Oikawa frowned, not understanding. "Yes what?"

"To your question, you idiot," Iwaizumi snapped, clearly embarrassed, and rubbing the back of his neck nervously.

"I... didn't even ask anything, though." It was now Oikawa's turn to turn tomato red, wondering if Iwaizumi had actually read his mind. He wasn't sure how to take it.

"Nevermind. Forget I said anything."

But it was hard to forget anything Iwaizumi said, especially when he bit his bottom lip and shoved his hands in his pockets, shoulders tense. It was hard to forget, because Iwaizumi was all that Oikawa could think of, Iwaizumi's voice was all that Oikawa could hear, and Iwaizumi's touch as their hands brushed when he handed over the phone was all he could remember.

There was no way he'd be able to forget.

Or let this slide.

He leaned down, and was almost shocked when Iwaizumi didn't pull away from his kiss.

It was brief. And chaste. Just a small contact between them, testing the waters, trying to get a feel for the other. And then, Oikawa had already pulled back, somehow still standing despite his heart thundering at a hundred miles an hour.

Iwaizumi opened his eyes, and Oikawa appreciated the gentle flutter of his eyelashes before he realized that he was being stared at very, very quietly.

Oh no.

"Oh no," he echoed his innermost thoughts, blanching in apprehension. "Oh no. Ohhh no, did I- Did I misread what you were- Oh my god, was that not what you were trying to say? Oh my god, did I fuck up or-"

He would have kept rambling, but then there was a hand in his, and his brain almost literally short-circuited, stopping him in the middle of his sentence, as if speech was foreign to him all of a sudden. It probably was. And so was hearing. Iwaizumi's lips were moving, but Oikawa couldn't hear anything past the thumping of his own frantic heart.

"No, no, it's fine." He finally registered what the other man was mumbling, and his heart accelerated even more, pumping so much blood to his head that he almost got a headache from how head-over-heels he was for this man. "It's fine. That was fine."

"Oh, good. I was scared for a second," Oikawa laughed a bit awkwardly, tightening his grip on Iwaizumi's hand, and delighting in the sensation of Iwaizumi squeezing right back. Then, finally, their eyes met, and blood suddenly rushed somewhere else than to Oikawa's head. Somewhere... not as useful in allowing him to control himself.

They said nothing, but Iwaizumi stepped up one step to be at Oikawa's level, and they were meeting for another kiss. The only thing that almost turned Oikawa off was how sloppy it was (definitely nothing like in the movies!), with their teeth clicking together once before they found the proper position, but then he was gone in some kind of heavenly haze where there was nothing but his hands in Iwaizumi's and his mouth against Iwaizumi's.

He briefly wondered if he was dreaming.

"Iwa-" he began, but muffled the rest of the name against the other man's demanding lips. And he pushed right back against him, finding nothing to do with his hands but put them around Iwaizumi's jaw to pull him closer.

Iwaizumi said nothing, and only split for a second to catch his breath, exhaling softly on Oikawa's lips, and Oikawa dared to open his eyes just a bit, just to admire the blush on his cheeks and the way his alluring lips opened in a pant. He really couldn't resist it. He dove back in to swallow one of his heavy breaths, and squeaked into his mouth when there were suddenly a pair of hands on his ass, pulling him flush against the other man. Oikawa almost lost his balance as he flinched, briefly thanking sweet baby Jesus not only for the existence of this perfect man, but also for not letting him fall and break his neck when he was having the time of his life at the current moment.

"Sorry," Iwaizumi grunted, pulling away and removing his hands. "Too much?"

"No. No, no, no," Oikawa whined, roughly grabbing his hands and winding them back around him, purposefully pushing himself against Iwaizumi to emphasize his point. "That was-" He gasped, interrupting himself to steal another kiss. "That was good."

"Hmm." The thrum of Iwaizumi's deep voice vibrated through Oikawa, all the way down to his core where it awakened a fire in his belly. He was too high to be self-aware enough to know if he was already hard or not, but if he wasn't already, then all Iwaizumi had to do was keep this up and he'd be hard in no time.

"Iwa-" Oikawa began again, a quiet moan escaping him when Iwaizumi squeezed his ass. It was kind of weird, feeling the phone in his back pocket press into his skin, but then he reminded himself that he could probably take his pants off soon enough and not have to worry about it, and that only fuelled his will to break away to talk. "Iwa, wanna come inside?"

"God, yes," Iwaizumi grunted, and if that didn't send him off the edge on its own, it sure did send Oikawa's head reeling. He wasn't sure that Iwaizumi was talking about his front door anymore and that was the best part.

"My keys," Oikawa panted, gently pushing him away to spot his keys where they'd fallen on the steps (apparently, while he was too busy trying not to come right there and then), and squatted to grab them, taking the opportunity to run his hand down Iwaizumi's chest, stopping at his belt and grabbing onto it, using it for support to pull himself up and simultaneously pulling Iwaizumi's pelvis against his in one fell swoop.

(He apparently had not lost his touch since college. Nice).

"Fuck, Oikawa, you're gonna have to stop that," Iwaizumi whispered against his lips, cupping his face to kiss him again. "Don't you have to pick up Shouyo, though?"

"After this," Oikawa shook his head frantically, almost losing his balance on the steps. "Forget about responsibilities for a moment, would you, Iwa-chan?"

"You're gonna have to distract me real hard," Iwaizumi teased, only making Oikawa hotter, and that's when he knew that the front steps wouldn't cut it for much longer.

"Come," he beckoned him, taking a few tentative steps up the remaining stairs, Iwaizumi eagerly followed him, though the only thing that gave him away was the mischievous sparkle in his eyes.

"It's so unfair for you to be this good," Iwaizumi complained under his breath as they stopped at the landing for a kiss, which was supposed to be brief, but which ended up with them holding one another again.

"Your name in my phone is 'Thank you sweet baby Jesus'," Oikawa admitted in a single breath, not knowing what took him, but thoroughly enjoying how Iwaizumi actually barked an incredulous laugh at that, and then tilted his jaw to get access to the spot right below his ear.

"What the fuck," he whispered, so hot and breathy that Oikawa shivered, and moaned softly when Iwaizumi kissed that spot, and then pushed him against the door to work on leaving a hickey there.

He let out a small cry when his back hit the wood, but clung onto Iwaizumi's shoulders nonetheless until he pulled away for an apologetic kiss to his cheek, and then his nose, and then his lips.

"Sorry. Did I hurt you?" he asked, running his hands up and on the sides of Oikawa's clothed chest, who was practically combusting at that point.

"No, no. You need to stop being so afraid of roughing it up a bit," Oikawa assured him. "Just... not in the street where anyone can see us."

"Let them see us," Iwaizumi growled possessively, biting Oikawa bottom lip before pressing a kiss to the spot he bit.

"I'm newly divorced, Iwaizumi. People will talk," Oikawa teased without any real intention to his words, and then gently pushed him away. "You're gonna have to let me open the door, though."

"Hurry up," his partner muttered, letting him turn and fumble with his keys. Oikawa only had time to spot his key, lost within the whole bunch of bright keychains, before suddenly there was a body pressed against him, almost moulding against the curve of his back, and his mind bent blank for a second.

"We're never gonna make it inside," he whined, trying to locate his key again when two hands snaked around him, settling on his thighs, teasingly close to his crotch. It was the feeling of lips pressed to the side of his neck from the back that sent him over the edge, and an embarrassingly loud moan escaped his lips as he pressed his forehead to the cool wood of his front door, his legs shaking as he tried to hold himself up. His erection was practically painful at this point, and if the hardness pushing against his ass was any indication, Iwaizumi was in the same predicament. It was nice to know that his advances were reciprocated with equal enthusiasm.

It was also very nice to know that his wildest dreams were coming true. But maybe just a bit more than just 'very nice'. Maybe something like 'fucking incredible'.

"Iwaaaaa," Oikawa whimpered, now working really really hard to pick out his key and slip it into the lock of his front door despite being stimulated from every end of his body. "Not in the street!"

"Fuck," Iwaizumi breathed heavily against the wet spot he'd left on Oikawa's neck, sending a chill down his spine. The sound of his door lock clicking open was like the sound of salvation at this point, and he hurriedly pushed it in, Iwaizumi following closely.

He barely had time to close the door before he was being pushed against it, lips claimed again. Despite not being in a rush anymore, Iwaizumi was still as passionate as before, and the dedication he put into each and every one of his kisses seemed to be the best part about him. Oikawa felt like he was on fire at this point.

"Iwa," he whined, pushing him away and then gripping the collar of his shirt to pull him towards the inside of the apartment. However, the more he walked, the more something seemed off, and as they finally left the entrance, the uneasiness finally gripped all of Oikawa's gut, just long enough for him to open his eyes and look behind Iwaizumi, into the living room.

Three pairs of eyes quietly stared back.

He stared.

Iwaizumi noticed, and curiously turned, his expression deadpanning as well.

And finally, there was the crinkling of a bag of chips and the munching of someone eating a particularly crunchy one.

"You both owe me ten dollars. I win."

"No you don't!" Kuroo whined. "None of us win. You bet three weeks, and it's been four weeks already!"

"Don't be a sore loser, Kuroo," Daichi huffed. "Pay up now."

"Tch. Should've known Oikawa was the kind to take it slow," Bokuto complained, munching on a chip.

"Well, I dunno about you, but it doesn't look like he's taking it slow to me," Kuroo commented, and then all three of them turned their eyes back to Oikawa and Iwaizumi, who were just staring at them with incredulous expressions on their faces.

"Oh my god," Oikawa finally began, feeling his jaw loosen in disbelief. "What the fuck. What the fuck."

"Don't swear, there are children in this house," Kuroo wagged his finger at him in mock-reproach, but Oikawa couldn't bring himself to care. He was too numb.

"You are all people who do not live here. How did you get in?" he asked, feeling the blood drain from his face in horror.

"Spare key."

"That was for emergencies only!" he practically screeched, rubbing his face with his hands.

"We were out of Doritos," Bokuto answered smartly, munching on another one.

"Oh my god."

There was an awkward silence between them all, only punctuated by Bokuto's chewing.

"Oh my god," Oikawa finally repeated, feeling defeated. "I have the biggest boner right now, and I'm about to get some with a man who deserves to be sculpted in marble and showcased in the national art gallery, and you guys crash my place for Doritos!?"

"And Hinata cried because he was homesick. But yeah. Doritos," Kuroo nodded, putting his hand out for Bokuto to give him one.

"I give up."

Silence.

"I hate your friends," Iwaizumi groaned, hiding his face in embarrassment. "I'm gonna go."

"Iwa-"

"No, come on. Iwaizumi, right? Please stay." Surprisingly, it was Daichi who spoke up, definitely grabbing Oikawa's attention. "We made dinner."

"You planned this from the start," Oikawa gasped, affronted and just a bit insulted.

"It's like a 'meet the parents' thing. We're just doing what's best for you, Tooru, honey," Bokuto chuckled.

"So... you'll stay for dinner?" Kuroo asked again, grinning at the very unamused man that Oikawa had brought home.

Iwaizumi did not respond, only glared at them.

"Do you wanna stay?" Oikawa mumbled to him, turning to give them a bit of privacy. "They're fucking idiots, but they mean well. I'm sorry about this, I had no idea-"

"It's fine," Iwaizumi interrupted, coughing to clear out some of the embarrassment. "I'll stay for dinner, I don't care."

The fact that he hadn't stormed out just yet was heartwarming to Oikawa. It would've been a perfectly sentimental moment if his dick wasn't absolutely killing him at the current moment.

"That's great. I'll make us some drinks while we wait," Daichi volunteered.

"Do you guys want us to get the kids in the living room so you can have a moment in the bathroom?" Kuroo suggested playfully, smirking provocatively. Behind him, Bokuto snorted and buried his face against the couch cushion.

Oikawa and Iwaizumi glared at all of them, but they did not shrink under the dirty looks, only smirked right back. Oikawa should have known that Kuroo would've orchestrated the whole thing, since he was a provocation expert. But still, deep under the embarrassment and slight anger at them, he was kind of touched that they'd go as far as to talk to his prospective boyfriend to protect him before he got into another relationship.

But just a little bit. Not so much when his erection seemed to be insisting for attention rather painfully.

Oikawa made direct eye contact, almost uncomfortably focused on Kuroo, and without turning to Iwaizumi, clicked his tongue.

"Back seat of your car?"

Iwaizumi, who was doing the same to Bokuto, nodded in Oikawa's peripheral vision.

"Back seat of my car."

"Dude, seriously?" Bokuto laughed, soon joined by a very amused Kuroo and a mildly amused Daichi as the two locked hands, and began heading back the way they came. "Don't get pregnant, you guys!"

"Fuck you, Bokuto!" Oikawa yelled out at him, and led Iwaizumi out to the sound of hysteric laughter.

Once they were outside, he stopped and sighed, tentatively pressing an apologetic kiss to Iwaizumi's lips.

"I am so sorry about that," he mumbled. "I'm really embarrassed you had to go through that. They're really dumb sometimes, but this is their weird way of protecting me."

"It's fine," Iwaizumi grunted. "Don't be sorry. At least the kids weren't in the living room."

"They probably planned it from A to Z," Oikawa clicked his tongue, rubbing an apology into the skin of Iwaizumi's warm hands with his thumbs. "But anyway. Are you... are you really up to finishing? I mean... that was kind of a mood ruiner."

"Tch," Iwaizumi huffed, as if he was partly exasperated and partly embarrassed with whatever he decided to say next. "Let's go. It's gonna take a lot more than that to keep me away from you."

And at that moment, Oikawa knew. Oikawa knew that he'd made the right choice, and that Iwaizumi Hajime was a keeper.

...-...-...-...-...-...-...

**Week 5- Sunday**

Apparently, Iwaizumi passed the 'dinner with the parents-but-not-actual-parents' test, as Kuroo, Bokuto and Daichi texted Oikawa to sincerely apologize after they'd left with their kids to go home. There was only smug satisfaction on Oikawa's face as he screenshotted the apologetic texts for future use, and obviously, when he saw Iwaizumi at the park the next day, he showed them to him.

"You did well, apparently," he chuckled, interlacing his fingers with his boyfriend's on the bench and showing him the screenshots with his other hand.

"Whatever. Not like I needed their approval," Iwaizumi rolled his eyes, taking the opportunity to check on Hinata and Kageyama, who were playing in the sandbox.

"Not fully, but it does help," Oikawa hummed, thrilled with the recent developments. "They won't bother us again, at the very least."

"So you actually gave them a key to your apartment?" Iwaizumi asked, still not over that bit of info.

"Mistake, I know. But... due to certain reasons, some of these guys could possibly have an emergency that requires them to leave their place for a bit, so I wanted to be the good guy and offer them a safe spot to squat until we figure something out," he sighed. "They're dumb, but they helped me get through a lot of shit, and they mean a lot to me."

"You guys are like... a clique," Iwaizumi mused out loud. "I kind of feel awkward being there."

"Noooo," Oikawa pouted, leaning over and pecking Iwaizumi's cheek a bit shyly, considering they were in public. "You're gonna be one of us in due time. And anyway, you won't be alone. I didn't know the guys were betting on us, but we're betting on when Daichi is gonna hook up with the guy who leads our support group sessions. Next week is our last week, so we all put our money on one day."

"You guys are horrible," Iwaizumi sighed in exasperation. "You can't just bet on people's love lives."

"We did, though. It's a good way to pass the time." Oikawa glanced over at the children to make sure they were still playing nicely, and then turned to smile at his boyfriend -his boyfriend, his boyfriend! Iwaizumi is his boyfriend!- a bit sheepishly.

"Ridiculous," the other man rolled his eyes and turned his head the other way.

"And yet you chose me," the brunet giggled and stole a kiss on his vulnerable cheek, laying his head down on Iwaizumi's shoulders and closing his eyes. A slight breeze blew and ruffled his hair, Iwaizumi's own short dark strands tickling his temple and forehead, and when the other man did not pull away, Oikawa felt something almost foreign burst in his chest.

(It was exhilaration, and Oikawa had not felt it in months).

Soon enough, though, Iwaizumi shifted, jostling Oikawa a little bit and prompting him to sit up again. When he did, he looked questioningly at his partner and noticed his straying gaze, deciding to follow it until his eyes landed on the same thing Iwaizumi was looking at.

A woman was sitting on a park bench on the opposite side of the playground and was glaring at them more-or-less obviously, even as their gazes crossed.

"She looks like she hasn't taken a dump in weeks," Oikawa mumbled, drawing a slightly disgusted, slightly incredulous look from Iwaizumi.

"That was gross. Whatever. Don't stare, it's rude."

"She's the one staring, so she's rude!" the brunet huffed, but did turn his eyes away, not willing to admit that he may have been a bit uncomfortable with the unwanted attention. When he did glance in the same direction again, just to check on the kids playing on the modules now, the woman stared back, and finally got up.

Oikawa didn't know why he suddenly got a chill and why a sense of dread suddenly welled up inside of him. Iwaizumi didn't seem to be feeling the same, despite having his eyes on the modules (and therefore, the woman as well), and Oikawa resisted squeezing his hand a bit tighter, not wanting to tip him off.

He pretended not to notice, glancing around instead and trying to focus on other things. Ah yes, the blue sky. And the very green grass. Oh, how surprising that a squirrel was climbing a-

"Excuse me."

Blue skies. Green grass. Fat squirrels climbing trees. Nothing else, nothing else, nothing else-

"Yes?" Iwaizumi replied, turning to look at her. Oikawa couldn't do it. He kept his head down, trying to quell the uneasiness churning in his tummy.

"I think I speak for all other parents in this park by asking that you two stop making public displays of affection," the woman indicated to them, clasping her hands as if trying to make her body language more reasonable.

"Oh. Didn't think cheek kisses counted as PDA," Iwaizumi raised an eyebrow, partly genuinely surprised and partly sarcastic. Oikawa had to admire his wit, in any case.

"Well, you understand..." The woman seemed to have a bit of trouble expressing herself. "It is different since you are two men together."

Oikawa knew it. The chorus of Taylor Swift's 'Trouble' began playing on repeat inside his head as he raised his gaze to look at her, in all her short-haired, well-manicured, irritatingly fake suburban mother glory. She was exactly the type who ended up putting 50 pounds after marriage; half from having 3 'cheat days' a week with her girlfriends, all of them on some fad diet or another, and the other half from the makeup caked on her face. Oikawa had worked in customer service before, and she was the prime example of the difficult client who asked to talk "to the person in charge around here" upon every single visit to the store.

He'd always very much disliked her type.

"So... somehow, homosexual displays of affection are more obscene than their heterosexual counterparts, is that what you're saying? I doubt any other parent in this park agrees with you," Iwaizumi followed up, now completely and totally deadpanning, looking like he was trying to debate whether or not he was up for dealing with this kind of person right now. Oikawa wanted to tell him to drop it and for them to leave, but his boyfriend's grip had not faltered on his hand, so that had to count for something, right?

"Yes," the mother nodded with a fake smile that stretched up to her ears, as if satisfied that she'd gotten her point across. "You gentlemen do what you want in your houses, of course, but in public, you must be aware of the children."

"We are. That's why, like any decent couple, we're not making out in inappropriate moments," Iwaizumi replied to her, using a tone that sounded a bit dumbed down. He seemed to be tired, but not at all bothered by the woman's words.

"Well listen, I said it's different when you're two guys together. How do you expect me to explain that to my children?" The woman pinched her lips sourly, kinda of like Oikawa did when he ate lemon candy. It looked a lot less cute on her, though. A lot less.

"As easily as you can explain to them the meaning of the term 'bigot'," Iwaizumi nodded at her, and if that wasn't enough, flashed her a sarcastic smile. Oikawa turned to look at him, eyes wide, both unable to believe that his boyfriend had actually thrown shade like that at a perfect stranger, and amazed at the quality of his sass. Maybe he could teach him to professionally throw shade at people later on, when they weren't in an unpleasant situation.

"Please don't raise your tone when there are kids around," the woman gasped loudly, and Oikawa couldn't not help but snicker at how badly she contradicted herself. This obviously caught her attention, and she turned to glare at him, too, as if having forgotten him previously. "And you! Are you going to say nothing? Is it because you recognize your guilt?"

"Guilty?" Oikawa huffed amusedly at first, but when the word finally left the tip of his tongue, he stopped. And slowly, he realized that he did feel guilty. He did feel guilty, though he absolutely should not have, he still did. So, despite the cold sweat that began to form on the back of his neck, he tried to play it off, and winked at her. "Just guilty of having the most wonderful partner, ma'am. Arrest me if you will!"

"I should! I'll call the cops for public indecency!" she threatened weakly, crossing her arms, and looking neither intimidating nor worth any of their time.

"Holding hands is public indecency now?" Oikawa whined, acutely aware of the fact that Iwaizumi was looking at him weirdly. Were his hands suddenly clammy? "Haha, Iwa-chan, I'm gonna have to wear a paper bag on my head at this rate, since I'm so pretty I could offend someone."

"You're taking it too far," Iwaizumi huffed, flicking his nose with his free hand, and drawing a squawk from Oikawa. "Point is," he continued, turning his disinterested face up to the woman again. "You're making homophobic comments and we really don't appreciate that. Please stay off the playground. We don't want any of these poor children to catch your stunning closed-mindedness."

"How dare you be so rude?" she gasped, stiffening, and though Oikawa was amused by Iwaizumi's attitude, he still felt fully uncomfortable being put in this situation. It reminded him of a lot of his recent past. 'Too soon' was putting it lightly, in this case. "Not only are you openly behaving so unnaturally, and you're unashamed of it, but you're also doing it in a children's playground and being rude to us decent folks? You're going to hell and not even prayer can save you now!"

"Yeah, whatever," Iwaizumi shrugged. "Can you leave please?"

"Not until you two leave!"

"Ugh..." the dark-haired man rubbed his forehead with his free hand, as if talking to her gave him a headache. However, when he turned to Oikawa, something must've been wrong on his face because he was suddenly on high alert. "Oi, stupid. What are you so pale for?"

"I, uhh..." Oikawa began, not finding a good alibi to cover up the panic that was welling up inside of him. Iwaizumi finally squeezed his hand a tiny bit, and Oikawa gave in, tightening his grip on his boyfriend as if he was afraid of him floating away. "It's just, uhh-"

"Dad!"

And the worst timing ever achievement went to...

"Hinata, go play," Iwaizumi shooed the child away as soon as he came close enough to be within hearing range. "Daddy and me are having an adult talk, okay?"

"But I wanna show daddy what I found in the sand!" Hinata bounced excitedly, brandishing something in his hand for them all to see. Of course, Oikawa's eyes went to it, but he was already too shocked to move, let alone respond in time when it finally registered that what Hinata was holding was a broken piece of glass.

And he got the worst father award for the millionth time in a row when he moved to correct the situation, only for the woman beat him to it.

"Sweetheart!" she gasped loudly, bending over and taking his wrist, using the other hand to pluck the piece of glass out of his hand. "You can't play with that, it's dangerous!"

"Don't touch my son," Oikawa warned her weakly in the background.

"Who are you?" Shouyo just asked, not seeming sure. "My dad says I can't talk to strangers."

"But he lets you play with glass!" she all but cried out, turning to glare at the white-faced brunet. "You're a terrible father! What if he'd cut himself!?"

"Let it be, he couldn't have combed the sand for debris before letting the kids play in it," Iwaizumi huffed back at her, finally seeming to realize that Oikawa was not doing as well as he had seemed before.

"You should have kept a better eye on him, the poor child! He's going to suffer for your sinful behaviour! Just because you're going to hell, you shouldn't take this innocent soul with you!"

"Don't say those things in front of him!" Oikawa finally stood up abruptly, shocking Iwaizumi, who nonetheless held strong onto his hand.

"Oi, sit down. Don't get hot-headed," he warned him, and pulled him back down onto the bench.

"My dad's not going to hell," Hinata weakly protested once a second of silence was established, and all eyes went to him in varying states of shock. Not just because of his vocabulary, but also because of his words. "He's the nicest dad ever. He's not mean at all."

"Look at the poor thing, he's terrified!" the woman gasped, putting her hands on her heart as if personally offended by everything around her. "Did you beat those words into him, I wonder?"

"How dare you!" Oikawa protested again, feeling his blood boil, but Iwaizumi held him down yet again.

"You're being very disruptive, ma'am, so if you could show yourself away right now, that would be great, thanks," the other man glared at her warningly, but she seemed to be too dead-set on her beliefs to understand the sarcasm.

"Oh, this poor thing needs a mother, or at least some woman in his life! He'll never be normal without a mother," she sighed sadly, and that visibly ticked both fathers off.

"Okay, shut up," Iwaizumi warned her again, much more insistent right now. "Leave, or I'm going to call the cops."

"Little boy, you want a mom, don't you?" the woman completely ignored him and turned to Hinata, who looked almost as distressed as his father.

"Hinata, go play!" Iwaizumi repeated, but the little boy was stuck in place.

"Y-Yeah," he nodded.

"See?" The woman screeched, triumphant. "He needs a mother and you stole that from him-"

"But my dad is great alone!" Hinata completed his sentence, balling his fists. "He's like a mommy and a daddy at the same time. He's nicer than my mommy. My dad is the best and I don't want a mommy if it's gonna make my daddy sad!"

"Shouyo..." Oikawa's voice caught in his throat in a ball of emotion. "Oh, sunshine... Please... go play. Leave this to me..."

"My daddy makes me yummy lunches and takes me to daycare and plays with me and reads me bedtime stories and takes me to play at my friends' houses, and my mommy didn't do that, so my daddy is more better!" Hinata continued regardless, looking like he was on the verge of tears, and Oikawa had half a mind to get up and physically drag him back to the playground.

"This poor child has been brainwashed by your evil ways already," the woman shook her head mournfully. "He had no will of his own in the matter and you converted him to your... unholy activities."

"What the fuck," Iwaizumi finally cracked, earning himself a weak warning from Oikawa. "We're gay. We have perfectly normal children. We are a perfectly normal family. Now leave!"

And somewhere between verbalizing their sexual orientation and referring to themselves as a family, Oikawa had faltered, and when Iwaizumi stopped talking, he realized that there was a tear slowly making its way down his face.

He wiped it off with a pathetic sniffle, but as he did, more tears welled up and tipped over. He'd always hated how easily he cried. Back then, back when everything went to hell, it had probably been what had hurt his son the most. Seeing his father totally vulnerable under the verbal assault of another person. And history did repeat itself.

It wasn't long before Hinata was crying, too, albeit much more loudly, sniffling and wailing and waddling over to Oikawa to grab one of his legs.

(At this point, they'd probably gotten the attention of every single family on the playground, but as people usually behaved, none of them actually made eye contact with them. It was disheartening how alone and isolated Oikawa felt).

"Oi, Shouyo!"

A new voice joined the fray (because this is what it was; a battle against a frustratingly stubborn enemy), and Oikawa blinked past the tears to see a very angry-looking black-haired tyke toddling their way, cheeks puffed up.

"You took so long showing your daddy the treasure that the dragon stole the princess!" he huffed in a strangely comical way, before finally seeming to notice that Hinata was crying. "Why are you crying?" he asked immediately, walking past the woman, who now looked horror-stricken, and stopping next to Hinata. "Don't cry. A hero doesn't cry."

"I'm sorry," Hinata whimpered, and Oikawa patted his hair softly, feeling weak. His other hand was still in Iwaizumi's, and he turned to suggest to him to let go and get the woman away whilst he took care of the children, but Tobio, the little brat, beat him to the next thing to be said.

"Did you make Shouyo cry?" he asked to the lady behind him, glaring up at him and actually being strangely intimidating for a person a quarter of her size.

"No, sweetheart, I'm only looking out for you. Your daddies made him cry because they're mean, horrible people! And you have to tell a teacher at school if they hurt you at home, alright?" She warned him urgently.

"What the he- heck is that assumption?" Iwaizumi clicked his tongue, now definitely offended. "You don't have the right to cast a judgement on us based on out sexual orientation. You're making false accusations now!"

"He's not my daddy," Tobio huffed, pointing to Oikawa, as if offended by the mere thought of it. The brunet could have been ticked at the kid for his attitude, but he was too distressed to get this thought together, let alone his playful mood. "He is." Tobio pointed to Iwaizumi, and then turned to him. "Daddy, did she make Shouyo cry?"

"Yes. And she's telling lies and being mean, so you shouldn't let anything she says get to you, okay?" Iwaizumi explained, but Tobio seemed like he'd heard enough already.

Like a king on a war horse, he thundered onward to the enemy and cast his judgement upon the enemy in one fell swoop.

Which basically looked like this tiny ball of fury marching up to an adult and kicking her in the shin as hard as he could. For a split second, Oikawa reconsidered his opinion of the annoying kid. He was actually pretty cool. Sometimes.

The woman screamed and stumbled, clutching her leg where Tobio kicked her, and then glared at him angrily where he stood with his tiny arms crossed.

"I take it back! You're all monsters! All of you are monsters and deserve to go to hell!" she spat at them.

"Tobio, we don't hit people when we're angry," Iwaizumi corrected calmly, although he was smirking. "What do you say when you did something wrong?"

"Sorry," the child huffed with more attitude than Oikawa had ever seen any two year-old have.

"You're not sorry, you little devil!" she seethed, straightening up to her full height and towering over them with her highly menacing 5'8 stature. However, before she could keep hurling abuse at the four of them, two of whom were crying and the other two of whom looked incredibly pissed, a saviour finally arrived.

In the form of a pissed-looking teenager, who even went as far as to remove her headphones to confront the woman.

"Okay, haven't you bothered them enough!? You made a kid cry, for god's sake," the teen glared at the woman. "You're a grown woman and you're not feeling ashamed of picking on kids?"

"I'm not-"

The domino effect was quick. Soon enough, there was another person, a man who was taking a break from jogging, who jogged over and planted himself next to the woman disapprovingly.

"Seriously, you're making a commotion over something super trivial in the middle of a children's playground. You're the disgrace! Stop bothering these good people and just take your unpleasant attitude elsewhere."

"Yeah, you're not welcome here," a mother who had previously been ignoring them butted in, crossing her arms and squaring her shoulders. "Leave or we'll call the cops and report you for harassment!"

"You can't do tha-"

"All of us are witnesses and we all agree that you were harassing these guys," the teen interrupted her without even bothering to be polite. There was a hum of agreement that went through the others. "Just go away!"

"Fine!" The woman finally bristled, feeling threatened with so many eyes on her, and backed off. "But you'll regret it! These kids are monsters in the making, just like their monster parents! All of you will go to hell!"

"We'll see you there," Iwaizumi called out after her, sneering as she turned her back and stalked off to gather her own children and leave the playground under the disapproving glares of all the adults in the immediate surroundings. Finally, when she was gone, he turned to Oikawa, who was still clinging with one hand to his, and who was petting Hinata's soft hair with the other, whispering sweet nothing to comfort the sniffling child.

He then turned to their audience, finally looking a bit uncomfortable with the attention, and rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly.

"Yeah, uhh... thanks."

"No problem, guys. Take care," the jogger wished them with a small smile, and jogged off to do what he did best.

"I hope the poor darling feels better soon," the mother wished with absolute concern, looking at Hinata for a second longer before leaving them be. Only the teen remained.

"You guys gonna be okay?" she asked, blowing a balloon with her chewing gum. "I honestly didn't think that some people still forget that we're in the 21st century. Sorry you had to go through that."

"Not at all, been there and done that already," Iwaizumi shrugged. "But thanks. I, uhh... I didn't know what to do since violence probably wouldn't have been the best option. So I was kinda hoping to sass her off our backs."

"People like that don't really listen, do they?" the girl smiled sympathetically. "Glad to have been of service. It was only the right thing to do."

"Here," Iwaizumi quickly offered, putting his free hand in his pocket. "I think I have some change here... why don't you go get yourself some iced coffee with it? It's a pretty nice day out today."

"Oh no," the girl refused with a sincere grin. "I don't want your money. I just want change," she laughed sheepishly, and then took her headphones off her neck, taking a few steps back. "I hope the rest of your day goes well. Take care, all of you."

"Ahh... thanks. You, too," Iwaizumi wished her, and watched her put the headphones on and wave before walking off as if she hadn't just diffused a very heavy situation.

She wanted change. Iwaizumi did, too. That's why he'd accepted to date Oikawa. He needed change and the brunet was annoying and quirky in all the right ways, and Iwaizumi did not know why he liked him past the fact that from deep inside of him, he just did.

"Hey, you big crybaby," he whispered, finally letting go of his hand, which he'd held since the beginning, only to put it around his shoulder and pull him a bit closer. "You okay?"

"Sorry," Oikawa nodded, biting his lip. "It's just, uhh... I remembered something."

"Do you wanna leave?"

"No, no, I... I'm fine," the brunet assured him. "Just... Can we stay like this a little bit?" he asked, setting his head down on Iwaizumi's shoulder.

"Don't ask stupid questions," the dark-haired man mumbled and drew him tightly against his side, despite not looking at him. Instead, he turned his gaze to the kids, who were talking between themselves, Tobio trying to comfort Shouyo with that ever-present serious look on his face. "Hey, Tobio, Shouyo. Are you guys okay?"

"Yes," the dark-haired child nodded, reaching over and holding Shouyo's hand in support for the child who was drying his tears.

"Mr. Tobio's dad," Hinata began with a wobbly lip once he finished sniffling. "Why is everybody mean to my daddy?"

"Not everybody is mean to your daddy. Some people are just mean in general. Your daddy has his moments, but he's generally kind of a good guy, so it's other people's faults for making him sad," Iwaizumi tried to explain, unsure how to go about it. He ventured to gently rubbing circles on Oikawa's arm with his thumb, but then was aware that they were already being intimate enough in a public place, and stopped.

"Why do people keep saying we'll go to hell?" Hinata asked again.

"They don't know what they're talking about," Iwaizumi answered, mostly for himself than for Hinata, but then turned to the child. "And you don't have to worry about that, alright? You're a good boy, and your dad's a good guy, so nobody's going anywhere anytime soon."

"My mommy said we'll go to hell. That monsters deserve to go to hell," Hinata admitted sadly, taking Tobio's hand with both of his, obviously distressed by the subject.

And heck, Iwaizumi sure as hell couldn't tell the kid his mom was a fucking idiot. So he wasn't sure how to respond to that. Thankfully, slightly movement at his side alerted him that Oikawa had taken his moment, and when he straightened up, he was not crying anymore.

"Shouyo," he began, bending down to pick his son up into his lap. Iwaizumi quickly followed with Tobio, sitting him on his legs, so that the kids never had to let go of one another. "Mom said a lot of mean things. She was very angry with daddy, but not with you, okay?"

"Why was she angry at you? Were you bad?"

"No..." Oikawa bit his lip, aware of Iwaizumi's eyes on him, trying to figure him out through the layers and layers of concealer on his words. "I was just unhappy. So I told mommy that I loved her, but that I was happier marrying boys than marrying girls, and she was very mad at me."

"But I like Tobio and Keiji and Noya and Kei more than girls. Are you mad at me?" Shouyo asked, not understanding.

"I'll never be mad at you, no matter who you decide to like or marry," Oikawa quickly assured him. "But some people don't like it, and your mommy didn't like it when I said that. That's why she got angry at me. And I know she said some awful, awful things, but none of it was your fault, okay? It was all mine. And I'm sorry."

"None of it was yours, either," Iwaizumi cut in finally, having gotten a sense of what had happened to trigger Oikawa's divorce. "You shouldn't feel guilty for being happy."

"But... Shouyo misses his mom, and things would still be so much easier with her around." Oikawa's eyes were downcast as he played with his son's tiny, chubby fingers. "If I'd just kept my mouth shut..."

"You would've been unhappier than you are today," Iwaizumi corrected him before he could go further, firmly searching for his eyes. Oikawa refused to meet his gaze.

"Shouyo wouldn't have felt like he was unloved. That's the last thing I'd ever want him to feel," Oikawa murmured, more for Iwaizumi than anyone else. Anyway, Tobio was talking to Hinata now, which left the adults to have their own private conversation despite being in close quarters.

"He doesn't, though. Look at him. This kid adores you. It doesn't matter what your ex said to him before, he still believes in you and looks at you like you're the sun or something," Iwaizumi clicked his tongue.

"But..." Still, it didn't sit right for Oikawa to feel so forgiven quite so quickly. He felt like he still had to atone somehow. "She completely traumatized him, just because I couldn't keep a secret. He used to wake up in the middle of the night crying because he didn't understand why she called him a devil child, or wished he would drown in the tub. He's still scared I'll yell at him for being a monster or inhuman if he does something wrong, and always looks about to cry when someone around him swears, no matter what it's about. He sometimes still asks me where she is, like he needs her approval to feel loved, like he's still in denial of the fact that she hates the life out of him by proxy, since she hates the life out of me. The process of divorce took three months, one of which we still spent together, and in that one month, she hated both of us so much that I feel like he's going to take years to forget it."

"Maybe he doesn't quite understand it yet," Iwaizumi mused. "But he said so himself. He doesn't need her to feel loved because you love him enough for two. Like honestly, I'm not the right person to judge, but in my opinion, Shouyo is doing fine. You're taking care of him really well, and undoing the damage your ex did to him day by day by loving him without him even asking for it. I think you should look at yourself for a second, though."

"Me?" Oikawa frowned, confused.

"Yeah, you. The amount of guilt you're feeling is like... impossible," Iwaizumi clicked his tongue. "It's instinctive to try and comfort yourself, but all you do is blame yourself over and over again all the time."

"Well, it was my fault," Oikawa muttered, dejected, and shrunk away from Iwaizumi, but the latter rapidly put his hand up and gently cupped his chin, turning his head to look into his eyes.

"No, it wasn't. Do you understand? You did nothing wrong."

"Iwa-chan..." Oikawa mumbled, a small, sad smile tugging at his lips. "You're talking to me like a kid."

"Cause you are one, geez," the dark-haired man huffed, blushing softly. "Just accept this as the truth, because it is. You don't have to feel guilty for being happy. You are not responsible for your ex's behaviour. Shit happened, now you gotta move on. Shouyo is counting on you to love him, and you can't really do that if you don't love yourself, too."

The words rang true in Oikawa's head, even though he wanted, deep inside of him, to wallow in self-pity. After all, he liked having something concrete to blame Hinata's misery on, and if it was himself, then he would have no problems atoning for the wrongs he'd done. But then, Iwaizumi's words were like a light in the darkness of self-blame, and Oikawa slowly but surely began to lose the grasp he had on the guilt he felt.

Even if he wanted to feel guilty for Hinata's nightmares, now he could only imagine Iwaizumi reminding him that it wasn't his fault, and somehow, that made everything better. He still had a responsibility towards him; to take care of him, to soothe him, to love him. However, he no longer had to 'atone' for anything, especially not in his name.

Oikawa felt like he'd been freed from a continuum of confusion and guilt that had plagued him since his high school years. All thanks to a few simple but heartfelt words from some hot dad he met in the park on a fateful Saturday afternoon, and whom he was now dating. Iwaizumi had not solved everything magically, and Oikawa could feel it. It would take a lot of effort to get him to fully accept that he had done nothing wrong. But Iwaizumi had sped the process up immeasurably, and Oikawa felt lighter already.

"Iwa-chan..." he finally began, feeling a flutter in his chest. Previously unable to look Iwaizumi in the eye, he now met his gaze full on, even surprising the other man, and smirked. "That was so cheesy."

"Shut up," Iwaizumi bristled immediately, letting go of his chin and huffing, turning the other way. "You were being dumb so I had to try everything, right?"

"And thank you for that," Oikawa nodded. "I was kidding. I really appreciate it. We've been together one day, and you're already so willing to put up with my personal issues. You're probably like... not even real, or something."

"Of course I'm real," Iwaizumi looked at him weirdly. "And of course I'm gonna put up with your personal issues, be it on day one or day one hundred. I thought we agreed that this wasn't gonna be a casual fling kind of thing?" It was now his turn to look genuinely concerned, and maybe a tiny bit scared.

"No, no," Oikawa shook his head quickly, fumbling with his free hand to find Iwaizumi's, and entwine their fingers. "We talked about this, and I meant everything I said. We're going strong, okay, Iwa-chan?"

"As long as you stop calling me that, we'll be fine."

"Not a chance!"

"Oi, I'll beat you up," Iwaizumi mock-threatened.

"How about you kiss me instead?" Oikawa chuckled before he even thought about what he said, and then stopped, biting his lip. A sudden wave of shyness overcame him, almost literally spawning out of nowhere, since Oikawa was least shy person on this planet, probably. But it was probably the earlier incident that played on his self-confidence a bit and made it a bit shaky.

"Yeah?" Iwaizumi asked, just to be sure, even as he inched closer.

"Mhm," the brunet nodded, glancing around furtively as if making sure that no one was looking before leaning in.

"You asked for it," Iwaizumi rolled his eyes, and then shut them to kiss Oikawa.

"Yes, I did," Oikawa mumbled against his lips, and then stole a second kiss of his own before pulling back. The two of them opened their eyes and smiled at one another, and squeezed their interlocked hands as if to strengthen the promise that they were there for one another.

"Your dad's gonna wear the dress."

"No, yours is!"

"What are you talking about, Shouyo?" Oikawa laughed good-naturedly, ruffling his son's hair and then setting his chin on it.

"Tobio and me were talking about when you get married together. He thinks you're wearing the dress, and I'm saying that his dad is gonna wear the dress," Hinata explained patiently, kicking his legs a bit.

"Shouyo, you know you can call me Iwaizumi, right?" the man asked, amusedly pinching his own son's cheek and drawing a huff from the two year-old.

"Okay, Iwaizumi! So yeah. Can we have a big cake at the marriage?" Shouyo asked excitedly.

"Slow down, cowboy. No one's getting married, and no one's wearing a dress," Oikawa laughed, genuinely entertained by his two year old's thought process.

"But you kissed," Shouyo frowned, as if his logic was impeccable. "Don't you marry people you kiss?"

"Not right away. You marry them after a long time, just to be sure that you like them enough to spend the rest of your life with them," Oikawa explained.

"So..." Shouyo trailed off, losing his ideas in that muddled brain of his.

Thankfully, Tobio was there to save the day.

"You can get married when Shouyo and I go to school. And we can have a little brother. Or sister, I don't care," he spoke so diplomatically that Iwaizumi could not help but laugh.

"You're too smart for me, Tobio," he chuckled. "But Oikawa and I can't have children, so you won't have another baby. Two babies are more than enough."

"We're not babies," Shouyo frowned. "But why can't you have babies? You're gonna get married!"

"We're not getting married, Shou," Oikawa rolled his eyes. "And babies don't automatically happen when two people get married."

"Then... how do babies happen?" Shouyo asked, eyes wide in curiosity, and Oikawa finally cracked, lapsing into a fit of laughter. Iwaizumi shook his head, a serene smile on his face as he watched him laugh as if he hadn't a care in the world anymore, and then followed his lead when he picked Shouyo up in his arms.

"That's a question for when you get older, baby," the brunet laughed, bopping his son's small nose to the latter's displeasure, and Iwaizumi took the opportunity to look at Oikawa the way he actually was. Not the exaggerated smiles he cycled through every day, not the silly facial expressions and the purposefully annoying whining, but the wide, genuinely carefree grin on his face.

(It was gorgeous).

"Alright, so. Who's hungry?" Iwaizumi asked, adjusting Tobio in his arms before grabbing his backpack. "We can go buy stuff from the grocery store and have a picnic in the park."

"I want a picnic!" Shouyo clapped excitedly, bouncing in Oikawa's arms and almost making the brunet drop him.

"Okay, okay, settle down, sunshine! You'll get your picnic," he assured him, kissing his cheek.

"I want to eat carrots and cucumbers, but no tomatoes," Tobio requested, hanging onto Iwaizumi's neck as they set off.

"We'll see when we get there, okay?" Iwaizumi dismissed him and shifted him over to one arm.

Oikawa did the same with Shouyo in the opposite arm, and the two simultaneously reached out to hold hands in between them.

Oikawa had never been happier to be happy.

...-...-...-...-...-...-...

"By the way," Oikawa began as the two of them poured over the existential dilemma of having to choose between Coke or Sprite in the drinks refrigerator of the grocery store. "Can I ask you about what happened earlier at the park?"

"Sure," Iwaizumi shrugged, too distracted by the endless possibility of drinks to be much more expressive.

"You were so chill about it the whole time. Literally, I was trying not to cry and then failed at it and then you were just there, throwing shade right back at the lady like nobody's business. How did you sass game get so strong?" the brunet asked, finally opening the glass door to grab a can of iced tea.

"Oh, I've had practice with homophobes. Lots of it," Iwaizumi shrugged like it was nobody's business, taking two cans of drinks and comparing between them pensively. "I've been out since 11th grade, so I've had plenty of time and opportunities."

"Mustn't have been easy. You really are impressive, Iwa-chan," Oikawa commented, peering over his shoulder at his drinks.

"Not really," the man shrugged, almost knocking Oikawa's jaw with the motion. "It's never gotten to me. I mean, a couple of days after I came out, back in high school, one of the girls in my class rallied her squad against me. So I slept with her boyfriend and her sister the next weekend," he shrugged, and then put one of the cans back, keeping the victorious can in his hands.

"You've got incredibly rigorous work ethics," Oikawa raised an eyebrow at him, slightly amused. "So. Bisexual?"

"I guess. I don't really care. Like, at all," Iwaizumi shrugged, taking one of Tobio's hands off the shelf of chips and pulling him along as Oikawa did the same with Hinata.

"So, pansexual, then?" Oikawa tried again as they headed for the cashier, their children marveling at the colourful products around them incessantly.

"I guess. I'm not much for labels, anyway," the dark-haired man answered sincerely. "I don't really care what I am or what I'm not. As long as I'm happy, it doesn't matter to me."

"Well, Iwa-chan, I can tell you something you're not," Oikawa hinted in a sing-song voice, inching closer.

"Urgh, do I wanna know?"

"Yep, you do."

"Fine, I'll bite," Iwaizumi sighed, ready for the worst. "What is it that I'm not?"

"Single," Oikawa grinned proudly, and leaned over to kiss him.

* * *

**Author's Note**

**Primrose flowers actually mean "I can't live without you". Good job, Oikawa. Good job. And Gatorade is electrolyte replacement is case of recurrent diarrhea hahaha go me I'm the most mature nurse on this planet. **

**IwaOi ruined my life. We didn't see the bros too much this chapter, but I also wanted to write a chapter where we can see how the guys have personal lives apart from the support group, although they always find places to plug in their friendship (some moments being rather inappropriate, of course haha). Also, ever notice how nobody ever volunteers to break the ice in a tense situation but as soon as someone does, everybody's suddenly a white knight riding in to save the day? It's such a weird phenomenon. **

**I probably had more notes but I forgot and I am so tired it's not even funny. I'm gonna go crash. Good night. Thank you so much for reading and I hope you'll look forward to the next (and final) chapter of AAO. Next Saturday, most probably. Please review! (:**


	6. Week 6

**Author's Note**

**Over a month and a half without updates and I have the balls to present you mediocre writing. Please do enjoy the final chapter of AAO. Lot of shit happening, but I'm glad it all came together. **

**A common question I get is "is chapter 6 the last one?" and the answer is "probably not". However, the story will be marked as complete because the timeline is complete. Now, I might write oneshots related to the universe here and there. They won't be in chronological order, but will be snapshots of the lives of these guys and their kids as they go through childhood and even adolescence. Anyway. The end is just a beginning, my friends.**

**No warnings except for the fact that it's un-betaed, just cause I'm exhausted and have no energy to beta 25k words right now. **

**Super sorry about the delay, and I'm sorry for the anticlimactic ending. Please enjoy nonetheless!**

* * *

**Week 5- Sunday**

"So can you count to twenty for me?"

"I don't wanna."

That sentence was probably Yuu's all-time favourite. Daichi was not there when he'd said his first words, but he'd be willing to bet money that the first sentence he made in his life was 'I don't wanna'.

"Come on, Yuu. Just for a little while," Daichi pleaded. "You're switching classrooms tomorrow, and you're going with the big kids, so don't you wanna practice what you know already so you can impress your new teacher?"

He was duly ignored in favour of his son's action figure, which, whilst buffer and cooler-looking than Daichi, did not have Noya's best interests in mind.

"Yuu, when people talk to you, it's polite to answer them," he chastised. "So do you wanna look at me and talk to me?"

"Dad, look!" Yuu exclaimed, cutting him off as he turned to him excitedly, waving his action figure around. "Captain America beat the aliens and saved the world again!"

Daichi sighed. He really had no idea what to do with this child. So he did the only logical thing.

"You gave me no choice," he warned just a second earlier before his arms came around Yuu and picked him right off the ground.

The little boy screeched in surprise, and then let out a loud yell that was partly amused and partly terrified when Daichi threw him in the air before catching him again. The latter burst into laughter when his son clung to him like a koala as soon as he was in his arms, and petted his hair soothingly.

"Now, are you gonna pay attention?" he asked smugly, grinning when his son drew back and grinned at him as well.

"Again, again!"

"Not until you count to twenty!"

"One, two, three, four, five, seven, eight, nine, ten, eleven, twelve, twenty!"

"You're silly," Daichi chuckled, pecking Noya's forehead and eliciting a squeal of delight from the tiny human. "You know that's not right."

"I count a lot in school already, I don't wanna count at home," Noya whined, and then bounced in Daichi's arms. "Throw me again daddy!"

"Say please."

"Please!"

"Here we go." Daichi gave him a brief heads up before launching him slightly in the air again, glad for the high ceiling of their living room. He repeated the action three times, only stopping because he didn't want Noya to get too excited this late at night.

(And strangely, sadly, not because his arms were tired. He wished they would be. Noya was too small and too light to strain him much, though).

"That was fun," the child hummed as he was caught for the last time, throwing his arms around his father's neck and swinging his legs. "You're the best dad in the whole wide world."

"And you're the best son in the whole wide world," Daichi returned, slowly beginning to head towards the bathroom to start their bedtime routine. "And I wouldn't change you for the world."

(But he would. He'd take away his asthma and allergies, he'd make him gain weight, he'd resolve his attention problems and would make him healthier and happier, if he could).

"Dad, when I go to daycare in the morning, can I take Captain America with me?" Noya asked, not protesting when he was put down.

"Of course you can," Daichi smiled, fetching his son's toothbrush. "You can show it to all the new friends in your new class."

"Mhm," Noya nodded, climbing on top of the toilet lid in order for Daichi to have a slightly easier access to his teeth. "And he'll protect me, too."

"From what?" Daichi asked distractedly, handing him his toothbrush so he could start on his own.

"The big kids," Noya answered matter-of-factly, getting to work by messily dragging his brush across his mouth. "Because I'm very small."

"You're gonna be just fine," his father smiled a bit sadly at him and petted his hair, not sure what else to say to him. "Here," he decided to do what Noya did best, and changed the subject abruptly. "Lemme show you how to brush right. Up and down, remember?"

"Up and down," Noya nodded, toothbrush clinking against his teeth when he was unable to control his movements. "Dad, I'm four years old now!"

"Yes you are. And you're a big boy now."

Except that he wasn't.

...-...-...-...-...-...-...

**Week 6- Monday**

"Okay, Yuu. Now remember to play nicely with all the other kids, and make friends with everybody, okay?" Daichi reminded his son as he took him to the gym in the morning.

"Yeah! I'll play with everybody," Yuu nodded excitedly, swinging the hand he had in his father's as he walked.

"Good. And you'll tell me all about what you did when I come and get you, right?"

"Yeah," Yuu nodded again, giddily skipping a few steps. A the same time, a familiar face turned the corner leaving the gym, and Noya's eyes widened. "Uncle Bokuto!"

"Heyo, little man," Bokuto grinned from the other end of the hallway, waving to Noya. Daichi chuckled and let go of his son's hand, knowing to expect the child to bolt towards Bokuto, and practically jump on him.

The white-haired man ended up with an armful of Noya, and he fumbled to hold him up as the kid hugged him.

"Someone's energetic this morning," he laughed, walking closer to Daichi and fist-bumping him when they were face-to-face. "What's up?"

"I'm going into a new classroom today," Yuu explained excitedly, letting himself be put down to the ground. "I'm a big boy now!"

"Which one, champ?" Bokuto asked, patting Noya's hair.

"Uhh... I don't know!"

"Not Keiji's. I checked," Daichi laughed sheepishly. "But I guess that's a good thing. Noya needs to learn to talk to different types of people."

"Well, I hope all goes well today," Bokuto grinned at them both encouragingly. "I gotta run, though. Have a great day, both of you."

"Thank you," father and son echoed, waving to Bokuto as he left towards the elevator, and then continued their way into the gym where all the kids were already playing.

Whilst Noya spotted a friend and screeched, running towards them, Daichi approached Kenma, who was looking over the kids with the very same bored expression on his face.

"Morning, Kenma," he greeted lightly, grabbing the pen off the table next to him and signing Noya's attendance.

"Morning," the student greeted him, barely sparing him a glance. Daichi didn't take any offense to it, though. With the amount of stories Kuroo had told them about Kenma, he knew that he was a good guy, just not very good with people. Which was kind of an oxymoron, considering his profession, but Daichi was not one to judge.

"By any chance, do you know the name of Noya's new educator?" he asked, glancing at his son, who was playing tag with a bunch of other kids. "I know what his new class is, but I haven't met his educator yet..."

"Let me see," Kenma hummed, taking a look at a list he had on the table. "Nishinoya Yuu... Ah, he's with Shimizu Kiyoko. She'll probably want to talk to you if you have time."

"Not much, but I'll go have a quick chat. Where would she be?" Daichi inquired.

"Classroom 4B.2," Kenma replied quickly, checking his phone when it vibrated. "Oh, and Kuroo's asking me to check Tsukki's lunchbox for a snack. Says he might have forgotten to pack one. Can you check on your way to the lockers?"

"I got it," Daichi assured him. "Thanks."

"Mhm," Kenma nodded to him, busy texting to Kuroo. Daichi took the opportunity to sneak out of the gym before Noya could hold him up, and went towards the classroom area. He entered the PIN on the door and entered the quiet hallways, which would soon be full with excited children, and made his way down to classroom 4B.2.

Through the glass lining the hallway, he peered into the classroom, noting how nicely decorated and homey is seemed. It was set up like any other daycare classroom, with toys stacked on shelves and mats laid out in play areas for the kids. A table was in the middle of the room, next to a sink, twelve tiny chairs neatly arranged around it.

It was a very cute sight to see. Daichi was glad that Noya was moving into such a warm environment.

And then, a woman crossed the classroom, presumably the educator, in order to grab some of her papers off a desk and take a look at them idly. Daichi took a moment to gaze at her, at how fair and beautiful and kind she looked, and his voice caught in his throat. She reminded him of his ex, and at the same time, of everything but. She looked motherly and passionate about children, whilst his ex had been anything but. And yet, Daichi could not help but see Noya's mother in the forefront of his mind when he gazed at her luscious black hair, sharp blue eyes hidden under square glasses, her plump lips tight in a neutral expression that made her hard to read. The most unique thing about her was the beauty spot on her jaw, and that... that just reminded Daichi of Sugawara.

She must have raised her eyes at some point, because soon, Daichi found himself looking into her gaze. Sheepishly waving to her, slightly embarrassed he'd been caught staring, he knocked politely on the door, and entered.

"Hello," he greeted a bit awkwardly.

"Hello. May I help you?" she asked, all-business.

"Yeah. I'm Nishinoya Yuu's father. He's transferring into your group today since he just turned 4. I just came by to, uhh... see stuff," he stumbled over his last few words.

Thankfully, the woman seemed to understand, and her glare became more gentle.

"Oh, yeah. The little one, I remember. Well, Mr..." she checked her list. "Sawamura, I'm Shimizu Kiyoko, the educator for the 4-5 year olds, and I assure you that your son is going to be in good hands here."

"I don't doubt it," Daichi smiled at her. She did have very delicate-looking hands, after all.

"So Yuu is asthmatic, and knows how to use his puffers. He's allergic to cow's milk, and soy milk should be kept in the kitchen fridge for him. You mentioned that I need to watch how much he eats, since he's very small for his age, right?" she confirmed.

"Yes to all of that. Thank you for all this," Daichi smiled a bit awkwardly. "He's kind of a handful..."

"It's no trouble. I'm sure we'll get along great. Anything else I should know about?" she asked kindly, jotting down some notes on her paper.

"Umm... Well, it's not a diagnosis, or anything, but I've realized that he has some sort of attention span deficit. He doesn't pay attention for a long time and gets bored easily, and may change subjects if you ask him a question. I'm sorry about that."

"No need to apologize. I'm finishing my bachelor's degree on child psychology and heading into my master's degree afterwards, so your son is in good hands. I will adapt my learning techniques to his abilities after I evaluate them," she reassured him, and warmth bloomed in Daichi's chest at the thought of leaving his son in such great hands.

"Thank you so much. This really means a lot to me," he sighed out, feeling a load tumble off his shoulders.

"Not at all," she assured him, and then picked up her attendance list. "I must be going to get them from the gym now, though. If you'll excuse me..."

"Of course!" Daichi nodded quickly, backtracking out of the classroom as she exited it as well. "Have a great day."

"Likewise."

They separated, and Daichi hesitated just a little bit longer before heading towards the kids' lockers in order to check on Tsukki's lunchbox as asked. On his way out, he crossed his son in the hallway, walking towards his classroom with the rest of his group, and briefly interrupted his text to wave him goodbye.

Noya smiled softly and waved back, and then jogged lightly to catch up to his buddy under his father's loving gaze.

"Okay, friends," Shimizu clapped to gather their attention once they reached the classroom. "Let's all go get our lunchboxes before we start playing. Remember, no running in the hallways."

"Yes, Kiyoko," the kids all chorused, and then broke up to head towards the locker area. Noya followed them, not too sure what he was expected to do, and mimicked his peers when they all grabbed their lunchboxes and returned to the classroom, sitting down at a table.

He was suddenly aware that he wasn't sure where to sit.

"Um," he called, heading over to his new teacher, who was preparing orange slices by the sink. "Miss Kiyoko? Where is my place?"

"You can sit wherever you like, Yuu," she smiled at him, pointing at an empty chair. "There, go sit between Ryuunosuke and Lev, okay?"

"Mhm," the boy nodded, and hurriedly went for the empty chair, lest someone claim it before him.

He slipped between the two boys his teacher had introduced, and then turned to the one on his right.

"What's your name?" he asked curiously, looking at his hair. Or lack, thereof. "Can I touch your hair?"

"Ryuunosuke Tanaka," the other kid grinned at him. "Yeah you can. Look. It's all spiky!"

"So cool! It's so short!" Noya marvelled, running both his hands on the kid's buzz cut. "You're so cool, Ree-uhh... Ryo..."

"Ryuu! We're friends, so you can say my nickname," the other child assured him, making Noya's heart flutter. His first friend, ten minutes into being in a new class. He didn't have to be afraid of playing alone now.

"You can say Noya to me, then!" he replied.

"Say Lev to me," the kid on his left piped in excitedly. "We're friends, too!"

"Me, too!"

"I'm friends, too!"

All at once, all the children began to talk excitedly, curious about the newcomer and mostly just interested in talking about themselves, and soon the classroom was filled with chatter.

"Okay, everybody!" Kiyoko finally called them all to attention, and they silenced quickly. "Before we have our snack, let's go around the table and introduce ourselves to our new friend, Yuu Nishinoya. Yuu, do you want to start? Say your name and how old you are."

"I'm Yuu Nishinoya! My friends call me Noya. I just turned four years old," the child smiled brightly.

"Okay, Ryuu, go next."

"I'm Ryuunosuke Tanaka, and I'm four."

"Next."

"I'm Ennoshita Chikara, and I'm five."

"My name is Yaku Morisuke, and I'm four!"

"I'm Kentaro Kyotani. I'm five."

"My name is Kenji Futakuchi, and I'm four."

"No you're not, Kenji," Kiyoko corrected amusedly. "You're going to be five years old in three sleeps, on Thursday, so you can say you're five years old now."

"Um..." the child looked confused, but looked down at his fingers, and then nodded. "Okay. I'm Kenji Futakuchi and I'm five years old."

"I'm five, too," the next one pointed out shyly, ducking his head when Yuu looked at him.

"What's your name?" Kiyoko prompted.

"It's Asahi!" Yaku replied instead, rising from his seat.

"Yaku, sit down and let Asahi say it himself. Go ahead, Asahi," Kiyoko insisted, making a move for the kid to sit back down.

"Asahi Azumane," the kid mumbled unclearly. "That's my name. I'm five years old."

"Well I'm Kanji Koganegawa," the kid next to him proudly proclaimed, practically swallowing up the quiet child next to him with his energy. "I'm four!"

"I am Yuutarou Kindaichi," the next one nodded to him. "I'm four."

"And I'm Lev Haiba!" the one to Noya's left finished up proudly. "I'm six!"

"No you're not, Lev," Kiyoko corrected. "You're five."

"No, Kiyoko, I'm six!"

"Lev, you're going to be six, but right now, you're five," the educator rolled her eyes. "Don't be in such a hurry to grow up."

"But I'm tall!" the pale-haired kid proclaimed as if that was reason enough.

"I know you're tall, Lev. Now hush, everyone," Kiyoko prompted, putting her finger to her lips. All the kids mimicked her instantly, eyes alight with happiness as they eyed the bowl in her hands. "Okay, snack time. Remember, everybody gets one orange, and you take the one you touch first."

"Okay," the children chorused, and all leaned over as Kiyoko put the bowl in front of Yaku. The little kid picked one, and then passed it around, and Noya watched with increasing excitement as the bowl came towards him.

He picked out his orange and passed the bowl to Lev, who then took an obscene amount of time to pick which slice he wanted to have.

"Lev, they're all the same."

"No they're not. This one's bigger. It's mine!"

"How come Lev gets the big one?" Koganegawa whined, leaning on the table eagerly.

"Lev, it's not nice to lie. All the pieces are the same size," Kiyoko sighed, busying herself with washing the knife she used to cut the orange in the small sink.

Noya didn't understand what the big deal was. Already, the one orange he had was enough for him.

"Can we go play?" he asked as he put his chewed-up orange slice down on the brown paper Kiyoko had laid in front of him.

"Come wash your hands first," she instructed, and Noya excitedly jumped out of his seat to go wash his hands before anybody else. Kiyoko watched him at the sink and nodded once he was done to allow him to go play.

Noya excitedly rushed towards the first shelf of toys he saw and looked at them. Puzzles. He didn't feel like puzzles, so he moved on. There was then a whole shelf of dolls, figurines, and action figures. However, he liked to play with others when it came to that, and all his new friends were still waiting in line to wash their hands. So he moved on. Then, he got to the building blocks and Legos, and figured it was his safest bet, so he pulled out the box of Legos and sat down on the nearby mat with it.

He meticulously began to build something, he wasn't sure what yet. A castle, probably. Out of the corner of his eye, he glanced around the room, watching his new friends immediately head for their favourite play station as soon as their hands were clean. Some of them went for the books, others went to the toolbox toy, and Noya envied how they seemed to be so familiar with one another.

"Hey, Noya!" a voice suddenly called, and the child turned to look at the newcomer. He quickly recognized the unique buzz-cut look on Ryuu and grinned. "I wanna play with you!"

"I'm gonna build a castle. Or a tower. Or a boat!" Noya explained, scooting over to make place for the other child.

"Okay! I'll build a farm, and then I'll put the cows and pigs in it," Ryuu nodded at him, and picked out a few pieces to start building.

The two worked in silence, fully concentrated on their own tasks, and the stack of Legos in the box went down until there were only a few pieces left. And then, what had to happen happened, and Ryuu and Noya both put their hand on the same piece at the same time.

"I want it," Noya immediately pulled it towards him, but Ryuu didn't let go.

"I want it, too."

"But I need it to build the wall."

"And I need it for the fence to keep the cows in."

"But I took it first!"

"No you didn't, I did!"

"Boys!" Kiyoko interrupted them from where she was sitting with Asahi to colour a picture. The two turned to her, Noya panicking a bit at the thought of being reprimanded on the first day, and she frowned at them. "You need to share the toys. We don't fight over toys, you know that."

"Okay, Kiyoko..." The two of them replied simultaneously, and then turned to look at the piece they were still gripping. It was a long piece, one of the rarest ones in the stack, and they both really wanted it to build their respective buildings.

"We have to share," Ryuu mumbled under his breath, pensive, and Noya looked up at him, suddenly enlightened.

Later, Kiyoko came by to see how they were doing, and was surprised to see that they were very happily playing together with the farm animal and people figurines in their buildings.

"Looks like fun," she commented, squatting on the mat. "What did you guys build?"

"I built a farm!" Ryuu announced proudly, pointing at his building, which was stuck to Noya's.

"And mine's a tower!" Noya grinned.

"It's nice to see you two play together, then," the educator smiled softly back at them, and was about to leave, relieved that they didn't fight it out, when she noticed the reason why they'd settled so quickly.

The two buildings were stuck side by side because the boys had each used half of the long Lego piece to complete a part of their work. And Kiyoko laughed, right in front of the confused children, because this looked like the start of something great.

They played together for a little while longer, before deciding they'd had enough. They cleaned up, and after putting the toys away, split to go play elsewhere. As Ryuu headed off, Noya began wondering where to go next, before Kiyoko called him over to where she was sitting at the table.

"Yuu, come here for a second please."

"Yeah?" he asked, shyly shuffling closer to her, wondering if he'd done something wrong.

"It's your turn to colour a flower. Since the flowers are growing outside in the spring, we're gonna decorate the classroom with our own flowers, and I want you to colour one," she instructed, patting the seat next to her. "Come and sit here."

"Okay," he nodded and climbed up onto the small chair, and immediately put his hand in the box of markers in front of him, trying to pull out a handful of them.

"Yuu, one marker at a time," Kiyoko put a hand on his to stop him.

"But I'm gonna need all of them."

"Then you'll take them one by one."

"Okay," Yuu whined, and dropped all his markers, instead picking out a blue one to start with. Kiyoko put the black and white picture of the flower in front of him, and he immediately got to work on it.

Seven colours later, he had three petals out of eight done in (loosely used term, since there were more lines outside the outlines than inside), and looked very pensive about his next choice.

Finally, he spotted the colour he wanted next. With only one problem.

It was in the hands of the other child colouring on Kiyoko's other side.

"Gimme your marker!" he hollered out of the blue, scaring the living hell out of the other child, who practically jumped at being yelled at.

"Yuu," Kiyoko warned, frowning, but grabbed Noya's arm when he actually got on his seat to lean over and try to snatch the marker. "Yuu, sit down please."

"I'm gonna make my flower yellow," Yuu hummed obliviously, not paying attention to his teacher's command, and reached over even more.

"I-I'm using it," the other kid, whose name Noya couldn't recall, muttered, startled enough to look nervous.

"I need it, too," Noya insisted, and that was when he was put back into his seat by a very disapproving Kiyoko.

"Yuu, that's enough."

"But I-"

"Look at me, Yuu," she called dryly, waiting for him to look up at her to let go of him, and rub softly where she'd held him. "That wasn't nice. You were being mean to Asahi."

"I just wanted the yellow marker," Noya frowned, as if not understanding what he'd done wrong.

"Asahi is using the yellow marker. You can't have it when he's using it. When he's done, he'll put it back in the box, and then you'll have it."

"But I need it now."

"No you don't. It can wait. Colour the other petals first."

"No, it has to be yellow now!"

"Keep your voice down, Yuu," Kiyoko warned against, putting a finger to her lips. "It's very rude to take something that someone else is using. Wait for your turn. You have to share, alright? Now apologize to Asahi for being mean."

"I wasn't mean," Noya huffed.

"Yes, you were. You hurt Asahi's feelings. Please apologize," Kiyoko continued, looking between the two kids.

"Fine. Sorry," Yuu crossed his arms, and Kiyoko sighed, figuring it'd be the best she got out of him for now. "Please give me your marker."

"I... I don't want it anymore," Asahi quickly shook his head, capping the marker and holding it up to Kiyoko, as if terrified that Noya would hurt him if he kept it a second longer.

"I'm sure you do," Kiyoko sighed again, turning to face Asahi now. "You were colouring with it and you're not done. Yuu has to share, and now it's your turn to use it. Do you want to finish?"

"Umm..." Asahi hesitated. "O-Okay..."

"Good. You don't always have to do what your friends tell you, okay?" Kiyoko ruffled his brown hair, and smiled encouragingly at the excessively shy child.

Finally, she turned to Noya, intending on explaining that he'd get the marker soon, only to find him colouring with a purple marker, totally subdued all of a sudden.

"Umm... So Asahi will give you the yellow marker after he's done..."

"I'm making my flower purple," Yuu announced enthusiastically, scribbling all over the page. "Look, Kiyoko! It's for you!" He then grinned, and held up the paper with the messily scribbled flower on it towards her.

"Oh," the black-haired woman blinked at him for a few second, and then took the paper. "Alright... Thank you. But it's still not nice to take things that people are using without asking them first."

"Mhm," Noya nodded, unconcerned. "Can I go play?"

"Yeah, sure," she nodded, and watched, slightly surprised, as Noya jumped off his chair and quickly approached the kids playing with action figures.

When Nishinoya's father had mentioned his son's attitude, she hadn't thought much of it. Now that she had an idea what his attention span could be like, she could adapt her methods to him specifically.

In the meantime, Asahi was still shyly waiting for her to turn and notice him, so she did, and softly praised him for being able to write his name at the bottom of the paper, too. As much as she was intrigued by the newcomer, she had nine other children to look after.

She figured she'd learn more as the day went on.

...-...-...-...-...-...-...

The day ended up being very educational. She observed Noya quietly from afar for the most part, noticing how he played for a whopping fifteen minutes at a station before cleaning up and then moving to the next. Throughout the entire morning, which he spent playing and socializing with his new classmates, he had probably played with every single toy, or almost, in the entire classroom.

Kiyoko wondered if this child ran the risk of getting bored of everything in her classroom from the first day on. Thankfully, as by lunchtime, Noya had to be coaxed away from the puzzle he was working on, she figured it wouldn't be the case anytime soon.

"Noya, it's time to eat!" Lev patted the other child's shoulder as Noya tried to fit the puzzle piece in every spot he could think of.

"I'm doing the Transformers puzzle," Yuu replied without turning to look at him, finally finding the spot where his piece fit.

"Come sit next to me," Yaku called, picking his chair and putting his hands on the one next to him.

"No, come next to me," Futakuchi pouted, approaching Noya, who was still on his puzzle.

"Okay, everyone, come sit down if you've washed your hands, and Yuu will come sit in a bit," Kiyoko ventured to say, ushering the kids away towards the table.

Surely enough, as she supervised Kentaro's hand-washing, she heard the distinct sound of Noya packing up his puzzle and stowing it away. However, she had to call him back when he made a move to grab another one.

"Yuu, it's time for lunch. Come over and wash your hands please," she told him.

"I want to do the farm puzzle," Yuu replied, pulling out the box, and Kiyoko actually had to go take it from him to get him to understand.

"No. Now it's time to eat."

"I don't want to."

"You have to. You won't grow if you don't eat."

"Okay," Noya conceded, and ran for the sink, letting Kiyoko put the puzzle away and go after him to help him wash his hands. Afterwards, she sat him down at the table, next to Yaku, to the other small child's glee, and got the small lunch trays provided by the cafeteria. Meanwhile, the kids all brought out their utensils and drinks from their individual lunchboxes, and Noya looked around him, mimicking the others.

Lunch was set in front of him, a portion of rice and beans in tomato sauce, as he could make out. Nothing special. He imitated the others around him when they pulled the plastic film away from the small tray, and poked at the food with his spoon.

"Thank you for the food," Ennoshita grinned at Kiyoko, and all the kids chimed similarly before digging into their meal.

"Alright, here come the veggies," Kiyoko announced, bending over everybody's plate and setting down some sliced cucumbers, baby carrots and cherry tomatoes into their dishes. Noya watched in wonder as the kids thanked their teacher one by one, and dug into their food with gusto, and then looked down at his meal.

He wanted to go play.

"Yuu, you're gonna eat your food, right?" Kiyoko asked as she got to him, setting down some vegetables into his tray.

"I don't want to," Yuu truthfully replied, not sounding whiny in the least.

"You have to. Please eat, and then you'll go play."

Grumbling to himself in discontent, Noya played with his rice a little bit, and then put a spoonful in his mouth. Kiyoko finished going around with the veggies and then set the extras in the middle of the table for any of her growing little boys to help themselves from, and then retreated a bit to sit by the sink to eat her own lunch. As she knew she had to do, she kept a watchful eye on Noya and noted everything he did.

On his end, Noya ate slowly, not feeling hungry anymore after a few bites. And yet, when he watched the others around him clean out their trays, he couldn't help but feel out of place, and tried to stuff more in his mouth, only to find himself distracted by the promise of toys later on.

Next, he wanted to go play fireman with Kindaichi and Koganegawa. And then, he wanted to play tag with everyone. Would they be allowed to go outside? To the gym maybe? He wanted to see his old friends from his old classroom. And he wanted to play with Kenma, too.

He snapped out of his reverie when he felt someone approach him, and watched his new teacher pull up the now-empty chair next to him, and sit. That's when he realized he was one of the last ones at the table, the others already gone to wash their hands and use the bathroom.

"Yuu," Kiyoko called softly, looking at him from behind her glasses. "Why aren't you eating?"

"I'm not hungry," Yuu replied truthfully, because he wasn't.

"You only ate a few spoonfuls. A growing little boy like you needs more than that. You didn't even touch your veggies."

"I ate a cucumber," Noya argued, frowning. "I want to go play."

"No playing just yet. You have to eat a little bit more, okay? Just the beans, and half of your veggies," Kiyoko prompted, pointing to his tray. "Here, scoop up that bit there and eat it."

"I don't wanna," Noya groaned, but did as he was told anyway, chewing quickly to get it over with.

"Come on. Your daddy asked me to make sure you were eating, and I want to be able to tell him you were a good boy and ate all your lunch today," she continued, putting a hand on his back in encouragement. "Don't you wanna make your daddy proud?"

"Yes..." Noya sighed, and hesitantly popped a tomato in his mouth.

"Good. Then you have to eat." Kiyoko patted his back encouragingly again, and then got up to talk to the other kids. "Alright, everyone, did you all use the bathroom and wash your hands?"

"Yes," came the chorusing cry from all the other kids. Noya glared at them, sitting on the mat and waiting to play again, and couldn't help but sulk a bit.

"Alright then. Let's set up your beds for nap time, and then we'll read a book," Kiyoko continued, and threw Noya one last glance before heading to the cabinet, the children following her enthusiastically.

Noya watched sadly as his teacher handed small yoga mats to his friends, who ran and placed them in their usual spots and then brought their nap time bag to start setting up their beds. His food was cold and unappetizing in front of him, and he really wanted to get up and go make his own bed and talk to his friends and play.

Almost on instinct, without realizing it, he was suddenly out of his chair, and had taken the half-eaten meal to the garbage bin. He hesitated for a second before throwing the food out, and then quickly returned to his seat to put his utensils in his lunchbox. Kiyoko was helping Kyotani make his bed, so Noya took the opportunity to wash his hands quickly, and then head towards her like nothing had happened.

Kiyoko noticed him standing there with a smile on his face, and gently instructed Kyotani to tuck his sheets under the mat before turning to him.

"What is it, Yuu?"

"Can I have a mat?" the small child asked hopefully.

"Did you finish eating?" Kiyoko asked doubtfully, and Noya didn't even hesitate, not really caring. "Can I see your food?"

"I... I cleaned it up," the small child admitted.

"So you threw it out," Kiyoko rephrased, looking very unimpressed. She crossed her arms, and suddenly, Noya felt very very tiny.

"Umm... yeah, but can I go play?"

"No." The answer was firm, firmer than anything Noya had heard his teacher say all day. "Yuu, why did you not eat your food?"

"I didn't wanna..."

"And why did you throw it out?"

"I wanted to go play..."

"And why did you lie to me?"

"I..." Noya seemed to be at a loss of words, and turned his eyes away, fidgeting a little bit. His eyes fell on Ryuunosuke, who was laying down on his prepped mat, and he turned hopefully to Kiyoko. "I want to sleep next to Ryuu!"

"You're going to go in the corner, Yuu," Kiyoko shook her head, watching the child's face drop. "You threw out your food and lied, and that's not nice, so you're going to go in the corner and have nap time in the corner."

"No," Yuu whined, fat tears accumulating in his eyes. "I don't wanna go in the corner!"

"Bad little boys go in the corner, Yuu. When I tell you something, I mean it, okay?" Kiyoko sighed, taking a little pity on the crying child and kneeling to be at eye level with him. "Do you understand why I'm doing this, Yuu? I want you to know that it's not okay to throw out your food and lie to me."

"I don't want the corner! I'm not bad," Yuu insisted, wiping the tears that ran down his cheeks. Kiyoko picked up a tissue from the box on the nearby table and wiped his face, rubbing his arms comfortingly.

"You won't go in the corner if you play nice from now on, alright?" she promised. "For today, you're going to sleep in the corner, but if you're nice, you can listen to the story with everybody else, okay?"

Noya let out a sound that was a mix between a sob and an affirmative hum and sniffled, Kiyoko taking the opportunity to clean his nose as well.

"Come on, don't cry. Big boys don't cry for things like this," she encouraged him. "I know you're not a bad boy. You just happened to be bad at lunch. Just don't do it again, okay?"

"Mhm," Yuu nodded and shuffled forward. Before she knew it, Kiyoko had an armful of a crying child, and despite always trying to keep up her firm persona, she couldn't help but feel for Noya. Her arms wrapped around him and she pressed him close just a little bit, just for today, she promised herself, since it was his first day in an unfamiliar environment.

"Kiyoko," Asahi shyly called to her, approaching hesitantly. "Why is Noya crying?"

"Noya's just a little bit upset, but it's gonna be okay." Pulling the sniffling child back, she used a clean side of the crumpled tissue to wipe his tears again. "Isn't that right, Noya?"

"Mhm," Noya nodded again, wiping his own face dry before looking up at her. Kiyoko smiled softly and got back up, motioning him over.

"Come. Let me give you your mat. I got your nap time blankets from your old classroom, so you can set up your bed over here, okay?" she pointed to a spot in the room that was a bit further away from the rest of the kids. "And when you're done, come sit with the other children for storytime."

The promise of a story seemed to cheer Noya up, and he nodded, receiving his mat and carrying it to his spot before jogging to get his stuff from the small knapsack by the educator's table. As he made his bed, Kiyoko accompanied Asahi back to the group of children, half of whom had watched Noya's outburst, and the other half of whom were too busy picking a book to read.

"So. What did we pick today, friends?" Kiyoko asked, pulling a small chair and sitting on it in front of the children.

"Read us Aladdin, Kiyoko!" Yaku enthusiastically brandished the book up to her, and seeing as there weren't many complaints, Kiyoko took the book.

"Alright, Aladdin it is." She glanced back to make sure Noya was coming, and surely enough, the small child was done within a minute, and joined them all on the mat.

"Sit here, Noya!" Ryuu called, patting the mat next to him, and scooted over to give Noya place to squeeze between him and Asahi (who still looked so nervous around Noya, the poor kid).

"Alright, let's settle down so I can read the story," Kiyoko hushed them all, and opened the book. The children immediately turned their attention to the colourful images on the pages, and though the letters on the paper made absolutely no sense to them, they listened avidly to the story of the street-kid-turned-prince.

To Noya's credit, he listened for a whole page and a half before getting bored and looking around him for some other entertainment. His hand fell on an action figure and he grabbed it off the shelf, poking it and flicking some of its movable pieces.

"Yuu," Kiyoko interrupted her story when she noticed him. "It's rude to play during storytime. We're reading a story now. Please put that back and apologize to everybody for interrupting the story."

Yuu looked like he wanted to retort, but bit his tongue.

"Sorry," he muttered, putting the toy back on the shelf and sitting back down with a small pout.

"That's very good. Thank you," Kiyoko smiled at him, and continued with her story. This time, Noya did not interrupt until she finished with a happily ever after.

When she was done, the children stood up as if they already knew what to do, and Noya followed, not sure what to do.

"Let's play policemans after nap time, Noya," Lev suggested as he went towards his bed.

"No, because Noya is going to play with the Superman toys with me!" Yaku huffed, as if offended.

"We'll have plenty of time to play anything you want after the nap, alright children?" Kiyoko reminded them, giving them gentle pushes towards their mats.

"Okay," came the chorusing cry accompanied by the sound of ruffling blankets.

"Okay, sleep well everyone. I don't want anybody to be awake anymore," the educator asked again, and Noya groaned as he slipped into his bed, not wanting to nap.

"I wanna play," he grumbled to himself, but a part of him also didn't wanna contradict Kiyoko anymore. She did put him in the corner, but... she was actually pretty nice. He liked her. And he liked his new friends. And his new classroom with his new toys.

He liked this new adventure in his life.

He drifted in and out of sleep, too excited to take an actual nap, but to his credit, he did keep quiet the entire time. For him especially, that had to count for something.

...-...-...-...-...-...-...

"Yuu, your dad is here to pick you up."

"Wait, Kiyoko, I'm a plane!"

Daichi certainly hadn't been expecting this sight. The entire day, he'd wondered and worried that Noya would not fit in, but he certainly hadn't foreseen seeing his child being chased by a handful of others across the gym, laughing and screeching as they played some modified kind of tag that only they understood.

"Don't keep daddy waiting, Yuu," Kiyoko repeated, turning and giving Daichi a small nod to acknowledge him.

"It's alright," Daichi laughed. "I'm glad to see he's fitting in. Better than what I expected, anyway."

"I got a good sense of what he's like, today. I think that as the weeks pass, I'll more and more be able to adapt my discipline to him," Kiyoko explained. "He has a very short attention span, I think that's the most detrimental bit of his personality."

"I know," Daichi winced apologetically. "Sorry if he made your job harder."

"Not at all. He's kind of a sweetheart, so I don't mind," Kiyoko smiled softly, chuckling when Yuu came barreling into his dad's legs.

"Hi dad!"

"Hey, champ," Daichi chuckled as well, picking his son up to kiss his forehead. "How was daycare?"

"It was fun! I made a lot of new friends, there's Ryuu and Asahi and Yaku and Lev and-"

"How about you tell me all of this on the ride home, okay?" Daichi laughed at his enthusiasm.

"And Kiyoko is really nice, too!" Noya exclaimed, turning to his teacher. "She let me play a lot. But she put me in the corner."

"You had to take a time out because you threw out your lunch, Yuu," she reminded him calmly, but that caught Daichi's attention.

"What do you mean?" he asked, shifting Noya onto his other arm.

"I asked him to eat his whole tray, or at least part of it, and he threw it out when I had my back turned." The bespectacled woman explained apologetically.

"It's fine. He does that. How much did he eat?" Daichi asked again, frowning.

"About a quarter of his tray. Bit more. I'll keep working on it."

"And I'll ask the pediatrician about this," Daichi clicked his tongue in displeasure, briefly glancing at the child, who was now totally distracted by his own fingers. "Speaking of which, I called the clinic today and I was able to push Noya's appointment to tomorrow. So I just wanted to inform you that he wouldn't be coming in to daycare at all tomorrow."

"That's fine," Kiyoko nodded pleasantly. "I'll see him on Wednesday, then."

"Yep." Daichi nodded, flinching when Noya yelled something loudly to one of his friends, his voice uncontrolled despite him being so close to Daichi's poor, sensitive ears. "Ugh... sorry again if he was a disturbance... I'm not very good at this whole discipline business, but if you need to be extra firm with him to get him to stay in line, then I suppose that's what has to be done..."

"Not at all," Kiyoko shook her head reassuringly. "I believe in understanding consent over blind obedience, especially in growing children. If you'll allow me to quote, I'd like to point out something said by Emma Goldman, an author I don't fully see eye-to-eye with, but whose words I sometimes found true. She once said that 'No one has yet fully realized the wealth of sympathy, kindness and generosity hidden in the soul of a child. The effort of every true education should be to unlock that treasure'. And my philosophy of childhood education abides almost exactly by these words."

"That's powerful," Daichi laughed a bit self-deprecatingly. "I'm very impressed by your expertise, miss Shimizu. I wish I had that sort of theory to back up this messy parenting thing I'm doing right now."

"I think you're doing fine, if I may," the educator replied without hesitation. "Noya's a brilliant child. I think neither we nor him have found his brilliance yet, is all."

The thought rang true in Daichi's mind and plucked a chord in his heart. Now given food for thought enough for days, he thanked Kiyoko, signed the attendance sheet by Kenma's side, and excused himself.

He was lost in thought throughout the ride home, one eye on his energetic son and another on the road outside the bus. It was probably true that Noya had some sort of talent or interest somewhere hidden deep inside of him, but... with him so energetic and easily distracted, would there ever be a way of figuring out what it was that set him apart from the rest of the crowd?

But as he put Noya to bed and set up the alarm to wake up in time for the pediatrician's appointment in the morning, he came to realize, slowly but surely, that he didn't mind if Noya had nothing; he didn't mind, and would still love him just the way he turned out.

...-...-...-...-...-...-...

**Week 6- Tuesday**

Daichi would never be fond of doctor's offices. It was a wonder how Noya, who was the one of them who was actually subjected to all these medical procedures, was not as intimidated. Instead, he seemed to be having the time of his life, running around the small play area they had set up for kids in the waiting room, bothering other kids who didn't seem as enthusiastic as him about being there. It was nice out today; Daichi regretted having to take this day off to take Noya to his annual check-up.

He checked his watch, wondering what to do after they got out of the office. It was midday, and Daichi was not scheduled for work until the next morning, and it would be too late to take Noya back to daycare once they were done. Perhaps he could use the day off to take his son somewhere they didn't go often, he figured. Somewhere like the pool or for sweets, maybe.

"Nishinoya Yuu!" a doctor finally called, stepping out of his office to meet his patient.

"Yuu, come on. It's our turn," Daichi called, getting up from his seat and beckoning Noya over from the play area.

"But dad, I'm the king of this castle! Look!" Noya insisted, jumping on the small module he'd climbed on.

"Kings need to see the doctor, too. Come on, slide down over here," Daichi chuckled, extending his hand. His son immediately slid down the small slide and jogged over to him, slipping his hand into his dad's, and following him to the doctor's office.

"Hello, Mr. Sawamura," the man grinned at them as Noya waddled into his office and immediately picked a pen out of the pencil holder on the desk, clicking it repeatedly.

"Hello again, Dr. Ittetsu," Daichi shook the man's hand as he closed the door, and sat down at his desk. Daichi took a seat as well, gently picking the pen out of Noya's hands and putting it back into the holder.

"How have you been doing?" the doctor asked kindly, rifling through some files to pick out Noya's.

"I've been doing well. Yuu has, too."

"I fell the other day and I didn't even cry," Noya interjected proudly.

"That's wonderful. What a strong young man you are," Dr. Ittetsu smiled at him. "So you know how it goes, Yuu. You're gonna sit on the bed and I'm gonna listen to you and take a look at you, okay?"

"Are there gonna be any needles this time?" Noya frowned, letting himself be carried by his father, up on the small examination table that was covered with a fresh sheet of paper.

"No needles. You had one a week ago, and that's enough," the doctor reassured him, taking his stethoscope off his neck and approaching Noya. "So. Do you want to take your shirt off?"

"No," Noya shook his head calmly. "It's cold."

"Okay then, I'll go under," the pediatrician nodded comprehensively, and slipped his stethoscope under Noya's shirt. "Now. Take big breaths for me."

Noya complied, and somewhere between the second and third breath, he and Daichi had come to a silent, mutual agreement that they were to hold hands through the whole thing. Daichi glanced at his tiny son and rubbed comforting circles on the back of his hand, more for himself than for Noya, as the latter did not seem very scared. Of course, he'd been through this a lot before, and had even been hospitalized several times, so there was no reason for him to be nervous anymore. That was good, but at the same time, sad.

"Everything sounds good in there," Dr. Ittetsu finally concluded, drawing away from Noya to look at Daichi. "Has he been using his Salmeterol as prescribed?"

"Yes. And I still make him repeat the difference between Salbutamol and Salmeterol every night," Daichi nodded.

"The purple puffer is two times a day every day. The blue puffer is for when it gets hard to breathe during the day and I gotta go see an adult with it," Noya repeated idly, almost mechanically.

"Wow, you're so smart!" Dr. Ittetsu praised, and then turned to Daichi. "We're still in the process of evaluating the efficiency of the Salmeterol, since it's a new prescription. Please report any side effects and if it stops being effective."

"I will," Daichi nodded.

"Other than that, I didn't hear a lot in your tummy, Noya," Dr. Ittetsu chided, turning back to the fidgety child. "What did you have for breakfast today?"

"I had a waffle and a pancake and a whole banana and three cookies and yummy cheese that my daddy cut into squares," Noya listed off, pointedly looking at the wall behind the doctor.

"I don't hear all of those things in your tummy, though. Did you really eat all that?"

"Noya, no lying," Daichi frowned, tapping his hand softly in warning. "You ate the cheese, but what else did you eat?"

"An apple and a bread."

"About three cubes of cheese, two slices of apple, and a quarter of buttered toast," Daichi corrected, mostly aiming his clarification at the doctor.

"That's not enough at all, though," Dr. Ittetsu calmly informed him. "Is that what he usually eats?"

"Yeah. He doesn't have a huge appetite," Daichi winced, feeling a bit guilty. "I try to get him to eat more but that doesn't work out great."

"My tummy hurts when I eat a lot," Noya provided helpfully.

"And do you eat all your lunch at daycare?" Dr. Ittetsu asked.

"No. It's too big," the child huffed, as if offended, and put his arms out wide. "There's this much food on the tray that Kiyoko gives me!"

"Okay," the doctor nodded, and then turned to Daichi, his expression falling into a tight-lipped one. "Mr. Sawamura-"

"Daichi. Please," the man insisted, feeling a headache coming on.

"Daichi," the doctor nodded. "Noya needs to start eating more. I'm going to weigh him when he gets off the exam table, but I can guarantee you that he's underweight. Last time we checked, he was in the 30th percentile, and that's not good at all. Thankfully, he's not underweight enough to qualify as 'failure to thrive'. But he's getting there."

"Failure to thrive?" Daichi didn't like the sound of that.

"Inability of a child to gain weight. It can lead to physical and cognitive disabilities, which is why it's so important for Noya to put on some weight right now, before it's even harder to reverse," the doctor explained.

"Does this have to do with the blood test we had to go do the other week?" the man asked nervously, his grip tightening minutely on his (tiny, oh-so tiny) son's hand.

"Partly. That was a hormonal function workup, and I have your results today, which we'll discuss later. That mostly has to do with his height, however. For weight, though, we're going to need to start a diet plan for nutritional therapy."

"I see," Daichi mumbled, trying to swallow through the ball in his throat.

"I'm going to refer you to a nutritionist, first and foremost, and then I'm going to call a social worker. Is that alright for you?" the doctor pulled out a sheet of paper from his clipboard and began scribbling on it.

"A social worker?" Daichi frowned. That didn't sound too good. His hand tightened on Noya's. "What for?"

"Oftentimes, a decreased appetite in children is due to stressful, outside factors, rather than internal metabolic disruptions. A social worker will be able to observe your daily routine at home and at the daycare, and all together, with the cooperation of the daycare educators and yourself, of course, we'll be able to figure out why Noya isn't eating enough."

"Oh." The ball in his throat relaxed a little bit. "So… so it's not like… Like let's say, if it turned out to be my fault, or something… They wouldn't take Yuu from me, right..?"

"Child removal is a last resort in all situations," the doctor assured him, noting his nervousness, although there was a slight glint in his eyes now. "Do you think that Noya's problem is related to something you may be doing wrong?"

Daichi took a moment to think. He looked at his son, his tiny, fragile, underdeveloped, precious son, and tried to think of where he'd gone wrong. It had to be his fault, because that would be so much easier to explain. But the more he thought, the less he came up with. And when Noya looked up at him curiously, his wide eyes sparkling with mirth and the joy of being alive, he had to concede.

"No." He bit his lip. "I… I can't think of anything I could've done wrong. I've taken care of him as best as I could since his mother left, and I don't know what's causing this."

"My dad's nice to me," Noya assured, as if he was sensing his father's nervousness. "He's the best dad in the world!"

"I fully believe you," Dr. Ittetsu nodded, adjusting his glasses. "There is no reason why Noya would be removed from you. I know that this is a stigma associated to social workers, but I personally know a very good one, and I'll refer you to her. She'll help you out for sure."

"Thank you," Daichi nodded, genuinely relieved.

"Alright then. Let's finish up on the table, and then we can sit down at the desk to talk about the blood test results," the pediatrician suggested. "If you could stand a bit to the side; I'm going to play a few games with Yuu right now."

"Are we playing tag?" Noya asked excitedly, almost unable to sit still when the doctor looked into his ears, nose, and in his mouth.

"No, no tag here. But we're gonna play a few small games that'll get you moving, how's that sound?"

"Yeah!"

Seeing as everything was under control, Daichi let go of Noya's hand and stepped back towards the wall, watching as the doctor asked Noya to name where he was touching, to move limbs, to squeeze, push, and pull, and a bunch of other tests. Noya seemed to be enjoying himself, and by the time everything was done, the doctor helped him off the table, and discarded the paper sheet to replace it.

"Alright, let's get a weight and height measurement. On the scale with your shoes off, Noya!" he requested, chuckling when Noya rushed to the scale and kicked off his shoes to stand on it. Daichi approached as well, knowing that he'd have to help Yuu get them back on afterwards, and also interested in seeing the values that came up on the scale.

Dr. Ittetsu balanced out the scale quickly, Daichi's heart dropping every single time the weights were moved down. Once the weight was gotten, his height was also measured with the integrated ruler, and Noya stepped off to put his shoes back on.

"So I calculated his BMI real quick," the doctor began as they returned to sit at the desk. "15.6. For his age, that would place him around the 30th percentile. So his tendency is still the same up to now; he's not gaining, nor losing weight, and same for height."

"Is that related to the hormone function?" Daichi asked, giving his full attention to the doctor after handing Noya his colouring book to keep him occupied.

"Yes. The blood test you got done was an endocrine function workup, which means that we tested his blood for several different hormone levels. The main problem we found was a deficiency in GH, which is the growth hormone," the doctor explained, pulling out a table with a bunch of numbers and words in it that Daichi could not understand.

"So he is physically unable to grow?" the man asked, his previous nervousness returning the more he looked at the highlighted and circled values.

"Basically. His brain is not producing enough growth hormone, which means that his bones and muscles aren't getting enough messages telling them to grow faster," the doctor explained. "This is the same thing that happens to people with dwarfism, oftentimes."

"So he's going to be small his entire life?" Daichi asked again, swallowing thickly. "There's no way to like… give him more hormones or something?"

"Yes. We've spoken of this before, but in little detail. Basically, what we can do is implement hormone replacement therapy."

"That sounds drastic."

"Well... it's not our first line of therapy, let's say," Dr. Ittetsu winced. "But it's very effective, since it replaces the growth hormone that he's not producing, and stimulates the body to produce more on its own."

"How does it work?"

"It'll be a series of injections of genetically engineered hormone that we'll give him. One injection every single day, in fat or in muscle, depending on the dosage. It works pretty quickly and you should even see results as early as in a couple of months, and the best part is that side effects are negligible. However, therapy will be continued for as long as he's still growing, at the very least," the doctor explained.

"And this will make him grow?"

"Yes. He will put on some height, and the new growth will stimulate appetite, which will make him eat more and put on some weight. And I'll talk to a specialist of hormone function in children and confirm my treatment plan with her, so you're guaranteed to have the best and safest information," Dr. Ittetsu finished.

"That sounds marvelous." It really did. A bit too marvelous, though. As a man who'd gone through many hardships in life, Daichi knew that nothing came for free. "But... there's a catch to it," he completed knowingly.

"Isn't there always?" the pediatrician pinched his lips, looking downcast. "It's the price. The hormone is recombinantly made in laboratories using DNA technology, so it's pretty expensive."

"How expensive are we talking?" Daichi asked, gulping down nervously. Already, plans began to run through his mind. Where to cut back, what investments to make and which ones to hold, what to do about Noya's schooling...

"10,000 to 30,000$ a year, depending on weight, dosage, and many other factors," the doctor answered, looking a bit regretful.

"10,000$ to 30,000$ annually. For as long as he's still growing," Daichi repeated as if to hammer the point home, his eyes going wider and wider the more he thought about it. "Oh... oh wow."

"I know it's overwhelming. Please take the time to think about it," Dr. Ittetsu advised. "Asides from the cost, however, there are no cons to this therapy, and it will benefit Yuu indefinitely. I can find you more resources and information about the entire problematic of growth hormone deficiency and replacement in childhood, if you like. In the meantime, perhaps there are government programs or independent programs for single parents in need of healthcare for their child?"

"I'll figure it out. The information would be great." Daichi bit his lip and rubbed his forehead tiredly. "However, I already know my answer. There is nothing more in the world that I want more than to see Yuu grow up healthy and normal. I will definitely agree to the therapy."

"Well in that case, I'll already write to the pediatric endocrinologist and let her know of Yuu's situation so we can begin assessing and designing the treatment plan as soon as possible," Dr. Ittetsu offered. "And you just worry about finding the money for the treatment."

"Yeah..." He had a lot of stuff to think about, and a lot on his plate in general, but he could always switch his priorities around to try and find enough money to at least pay the first year of therapy already. Throughout the next year, he'd probably be able to find a more permanent solution. But for now, he needed a steady source of income, and a large enough income to pay up to 30,000$ a year and still have enough to pay his rent, their needs, and his son's education.

"I hope it won't be too hard... The social worker that will come over can also bring you resources, if you like," the pediatrician offered kindly, noticing the struggle in Daichi's eyes, and hating how the young man, barely an adult himself, already had to make so many tough choices.

"That'd be great," Daichi mumbled thoughtfully, digging and digging and digging in his mind for some way, for some quick resolution to this whole new problem. "But..." But he had an idea. A tiny spark that lit a match that soon lit a pyre in his brain. And he knew. "But I think I've got it sorted out."

And on the way home, Daichi thumbed a number on his phone that he had not looked at in months.

...-...-...-...-...-...-...

**Week 6- Thursday**

"This is so sad," Kuroo sniffled as they all sat in their usual circle, waiting for Sugawara to arrive for their session. "This is our before-last session together... can you believe it, you guys?"

"Time flies so fast..." Bokuto sighed just as dramatically. "It's already been a month and a half we've known one another."

"Pffft, you kidding? It feels a hell lot longer than that," Oikawa huffed, getting eye-rolls from both the idiots in the room.

"You're talking as if this is the end," Daichi crossed his arms. "There's no such thing as endings; just new beginnings."

"Someone's been reading up. Or at least talking to someone intellectual," Kuroo commented wryly.

"Are you insinuating I'm not intellectual?" Daichi raised an eyebrow half-threateningly, drawing another snort from both Bokuto and Kuroo.

"No one said anything like that," a new voice piped in, and they all turned to see Sugawara enter the meeting room, dropping his shoulder bag by his usual seat. "You're really smart, of course!"

"Oh," Daichi replied dumbly. "Oh. Thanks, I guess."

"I mean, like..." Suga continued as if he hadn't dug himself a hole already. "You're really educated, so you probably read a lot! That's what I meant... Not like you're some kind of super-genius or anything..."

"Okay Suga, you're okay, just sit down and stop talking," Bokuto laughed out loud at the younger man's very obvious embarrassment as he pulled up a chair.

"Yeah, I will," Suga laughed, scratching the back of his head sheepishly. "Let's get started, yeah?"

"Sure."

"So as this is our before-last meeting, I want today to take a look back at where we began, and where we are right now. And then we'll discuss about these points. I want to hear about the past, and how things are getting either better or worse. Today, we'll gather our data and assess it, and then next time, we're going to put it all together and plan for the future," Suga explained.

"Sounds like an oddly satisfying closure we're getting," Oikawa acknowledged with a small smile. "I suppose I'll start!"

"Let's go, pretty boy!" Kuroo cheered half-mockingly, to which Oikawa replied with an equally mocking bow at the waist.

"So I remember, six weeks ago, that I came in looking like an absolute mess, and I had to wear sunglasses indoors since my eyes were so bloodshot from how tired I was staying awake to look after Hinata," he began.

"I remember. You kinda looked like a douche, wearing those indoors!" Bokuto commented.

"It was either a douche or absolutely repulsive!" Oikawa gasped softly, slightly offended. "Point is that I was absolutely worn out trying to look after my son without being able to look after myself first. I remember being consumed by the guilt of being the sole reason why Hinata's mother had abandoned us. I wanted to bear the entire fault for him feeling unloved and insecure, and I remember doubting myself every second of the day, wondering if being at peace with myself was worth the sleepless nights spent holding a toddler who couldn't understand that his mother never wanted to hear about him ever again. And I also remember being scared that this kind of psychological trauma would offset Hinata's development, and that I, as the pathetic mess I'd turned myself into, would not be able to help him through his struggles."

"I remember you giving off an air of somebody who was in over his head. Remember when we had to collaborate to get Hinata to stop crying?" Bokuto remarked.

"Yeah," Oikawa laughed self-deprecatingly. "I think I've come a long way since then. At first, I thought I was drowning, but over the weeks we spent together, I came to realize that I just had to straighten my legs to touch the bottom."

"Amen," Kuroo nodded, and they all nodded back, knowing that he'd felt the same.

"You guys helped take some of the load off my back until I was ready to help myself, and once I took a step back and got my shit together, it was a lot easier to see things from a new, better perspective. I was able to help Hinata get started with potty-training, kind of late, but at least it happened. He also became more communicative, vocabulary-wise, and expresses himself more readily now. I think that has a lot to do with him seeing that I'm not constantly uneasy anymore. And obviously, I really appreciate the moral support with the whole, uhh... Iwaizumi thing."

"No problem. I'm 10$ richer thanks to you," Daichi snorted, protesting with a laugh when Oikawa leaned over and punched him in the arm.

"You guys are so embarrassing!" he whined, before his eyes became softer. "But... I really appreciate it. I wasn't sure how the dynamics would change if I came out to you guys, even more if I got a boyfriend, but you all took it so well, and it boosted my self-esteem a lot. And as rude and as shameless as you all are, breaking into my apartment for Doritos, I also really needed to know that I had people looking after me. Knowing that I mattered and that I didn't completely fuck everything up was something I really needed, and I don't think anyone could've done it as well as you guys." He finished by looking at them and by giving them a huge grin. "So thanks!"

"Oikawa, stop!" Bokuto whined as they all clapped for him, genuinely glad he'd gotten so far. "You're too cute, making me wanna pinch your cheeks like an old auntie or something!"

"Thanks, but no thanks," the brunet laughed right back, a slight blush on his cheeks at the encouragements he was getting.

"How about you, Kuroo?" Suga prompted, turning to the black-haired man. "You were in a similar situation, right?"

"Well, I was having similar feelings, but the situation was totally different," Kuroo mused out loud. "But... in the end, it's not the situation, but my feelings that changed. Like Oikawa said, I, too, felt like I was drowning in all sorts of financial obligations, only to realize that if I just stopped flailing like a fucking idiot, I'd be able to step on the bottom," he smiled a bit sadly. "And it's still just kind of upsetting that it took me so long to realize that I was looking at things from the wrong perspective."

"And now, look at you," Bokuto smiled proudly at him. "Moving into a new apartment in two weeks. That's exciting!"

"It is," Kuroo nodded. "And I didn't think I'd be able to get there, ever. I used to think that 60 hours a week was enough to get both of us by and provide for us, and it did, in terms of clothes, food, and rent. Except... it took me a shamefully long amount of time to realize that money doesn't buy happiness. I mean, yeah, it comes pretty damn close, and I'm not saying it's not important, but Tsukki keeps reminding me that he doesn't want new toys, but wants to go to the park, or he doesn't wanna eat out but wants to cook with me at home. It's tiny little things like that that have opened my eyes."

"They do say that children have the purest view on life..." Oikawa also smiled at him, seeing in the fondness in his eyes when he spoke of his son, recognizing the expression as something familiar.

"Tsukki's the most innocent child of all," Kuroo nodded. "And I almost ruined that when I made him feel abandoned. I thought that I was doing the right thing when I was working hard to provide for us, but unknowingly, I projected all my stress and worries on him, and made him feel like he was alone in the world. He had wide, bright eyes, and a creative mind like no other, and I think he became guilty for 'bothering' me with those wonderful stories and adventures. While I was too busy looking at the ground, he was trying to show me the stars, and I almost lost all of that." He then turned to Daichi, and then looked over to Oikawa and Bokuto, grinning at all of them. "Good thing I had people to knock some sense into me. Or yell it, in Daichi's case."

"You're very welcome. I'm still sorry about being rough, though," Daichi chuckled sheepishly.

"You're okay," Kuroo waved him off. "I needed the harsh slap back to reality. I needed the push. I mean, I'm making a lot less money now, but I get to spend more time with Tsukki, and I haven't seen him this happy before. And I applied for a financial support program I was eligible for, so until I can get a more stable career, I'm going to be okay, especially since Bokuto and I are splitting a household now. On Tsukki's end, he's also more excited and much more curious, gentle, and sociable, and he's so fucking precious that I sometimes still can't believe he's mine." He let out a long sigh, as if he'd finally gotten everything off his chest. "It's still hard without my girl around sometimes, and it's probably only going to get more complicated from now on. But I'm not worried, because I'm a super-daddy extraordinaire. Not just because I read books to prepare for fatherhood, but because I dove into fatherhood head first and still succeeded in finding my way back to the surface."

"Bro," Bokuto sniffled sarcastically as they all began to clap for their burdened friend, whose eye bags and tomorrows seemed a lot less dark under the light at the end of the tunnel. "Bro, you're so strong. You're my hero."

"I'm not anybody's hero," Kuroo blew him off, slightly embarrassed. "If anything, you're a fucking hero like no other, Bokuto."

"Hear, hear," Oikawa agreed to that. "Out of all of us, you had it the hardest."

"I don't think I did," Bokuto refuted. "I mean... I don't even think our situations are comparable because they're so different. We all had problems and we all had trouble dealing with them, and we all felt a hundred years older than we are because of them. The thing is, we all made it through. So in the end, all of us had it hard, and all of us are fucking heroes for making it this far."

"That's such an important thing to stress," Suga acquiesced. "Problems are absolute, not relative. So whatever feels like the most stressful burden to you really is the most stressful burden to you, no matter what others are experiencing. Well said, Bokuto."

"Thanks," the white-haired man gave him a peace sign reminiscent of Oikawa's favourite gesture. "On that note, I just wanna say that I did come very far from when I first started, and there really is nobody to thank but you guys. Like, even when it was just me and my kid against the world, there were all of you to back me up and pick me off the ground when I decided I couldn't do it anymore. And I..." he trailed off for a second, as if he was having trouble continuing. The others respectfully kept their silence. "I'm not gonna lie, I'm still having a bit of trouble adapting. I still feel unsafe sometimes, even behind a locked door, and I'm still so afraid that one day, I'm gonna lose my cool and become like my ex was; mean, manipulative, and... and abusive. It's like this constant voice at the back of my mind telling me that I'm not a good person and that living with an abuser is gonna make me one of them."

"Do you think you're at risk of hurting yourself or others?" Sugawara asked kindly, in such a gentle voice that they could all almost feel the non-judgmental aura coming from him.

"... No." Bokuto shook his head. "I dunno. I'm going to say no, because hurting Keiji again is the last thing I'll ever even think of doing. But sometimes, when I'm stressed, it kinda builds up and I gotta take a moment to calm down because I can feel the pressure building up inside, and it's scary to know that I can't control it."

"But you are controlling it," Suga continued. "You say that you stop and take a deep breath, and that's all you need. You're aware of yourself and your emotions, and you're doing a great job of handling yourself. If you really think you're not doing well on your own, though, don't hesitate to talk to a friend, or to a therapist or social worker."

"I guess I should consider the option," Bokuto bit his lip. "Keiji recently got one. A social worker, I mean. She's incredibly nice and understanding, and she's totally non-invasive when she comes over to observe how Keiji and I spend our days. She listens to Keiji during one-on-one therapy sessions, and she's invited me to a family therapy session next week, so I'm kind of anxious to see how it goes. So far, though, Keiji seems to be appreciating it, and it looks like it really is helping him to talk about his memories with his mother to someone who isn't me."

"And how does that make you feel?" Suga asked, short and sweet and always as professional.

"I'm both jealous that someone else can be so intimate with my kid, and so wholly relieved that he's finally being given the opportunity and the means to move on from what happened to him," Bokuto winced amusedly. "I guess I should just be happy about it and shut up."

"Nah man, it's a tough time you're going through," Kuroo shook his head, always ready to jump in to support his bro. "There's no shame in feeling conflicted about it. It's destabilizing for you, too. You were a victim, too, as much as you feel like you weren't, so this isn't all about Keiji. Just as he does, you have every right to be upset, confused, or indecisive. And just as he does, you have every right to all the help you need to find your closure."

"What the hell, you always know what to say," Bokuto laughed a bit bitterly, but then the bitterness melted away to leave him with a fond smile on his face. "I know. I know, and I'm determined to get better. Not just for myself, but for Keiji, too, because he only deserves the best. He's doing a lot better, too. I explained the circumstances briefly to Keiji's kindergarten educator, so he's adapted how he interacts with him specifically. Keiji looks really happy about it, too, and he's being more vocal about stuff he learns, stuff he wants, stuff that happened in daycare, and the like. I'm really happy to hear him speak more and more, with longer and more descriptive sentences. He's still really shy, and kinda stays away from other kids, but his educator tells me he volunteered for an activity the other day, so I haven't given up hope. He's gonna be fine, I know it."

"That's so great to hear," Oikawa smiled a bit sadly. "He's so precious, it hurt to see him so quiet all the time."

"Yeah. But it finally feels like he's not afraid anymore," Bokuto sighed out softly, looking out the window at the evening sun in the sky. "Or at least, it finally feels like he's decided that the fear and the pain he remembers from his years with his mother aren't going to control him anymore. Keiji's been forced to be strong, sometimes too strong for a kid his age, and he's isolated himself in self-defense, even from me. But I think he's finally understood that there isn't a single way to be strong. I think he's realized that there is also great strength in being able to trust others again."

"Very well put, my friend," Kuroo grinned, leaning over and catching his best friend (and soon-to-be-flatmate) around the shoulders with his arm. "You're grown up so fast!"

"Stop it," Bokuto chuckled, pushing him away teasingly. "It's all thanks to you guys, anyway."

"Don't sweat it," Daichi waved it off. "In the end, you're the one who fought through it all and made it this far. We just helped."

"And for that, thank you," the white-haired man genuinely smiled at them all, bright and dazzling and truly grateful for all they'd done, and then nudged at Daichi with a movement of his head. "Anyway, let's just move on! I'm sure Suga will be asking us to discuss stuff we just said so there's no point in rambling."

They all laughed at that, over the sound of Suga's low protest, and then they turned to Daichi.

"It's interesting that you've mentioned a social worker for your son," he began thoughtfully. "Noya is getting one, too, soon enough, because he's not eating, and the pediatrician thinks it might be something related to his environment. Even if not, he's gonna have a social worker to do the same thing as Keiji's, to talk to him and try and work out some stuff."

"What kind of stuff?" Oikawa asked, always interested.

"Well, the appetite is a big one. Yuu usually eats up to a quarter of his meals and doesn't snack a lot, and it's always been like that. In that sense, we really haven't made much progress. We had his annual checkup the other day and he's still in the 30th percentile for BMI, which means he's not gaining weight yet. Other than that, I think the social worker's also gonna investigate his attitude a bit, see why he's so distracted all the time. I'm not pushing for an ADHD diagnosis, god no, but I really hate being stuck in the middle, not knowing if it's something in his brain, or just the way he is," he explained.

"For sure," Kuroo nodded. "And his growth? You were saying that he might be diagnosed with failure to thrive if this keeps going, so how's that looking?"

"Well, like I said, no weight gain as of yet, but we have demystified the height issue," Daichi finally smiled. "That's the good news on my end. Yuu's endocrine workup results came back and he's got growth hormone deficiency. The pediatrician said that if his GHD is left untreated, he'll eventually develop dwarfism, and the other option is to give him synthetic growth hormone injections daily until he stops growing."

"That sounds long and tedious," Bokuto frowned. "Not to mention expensive as hell, hah. Daily injections for the next, what, 12 years? Are you sure you'll be okay with that?"

"I've got no choice. There's no way I'm giving up on treatment that is sure to fix his problem," Daichi shook his head. "He won't like the injections at first, that's for sure, but as he grows, he'll probably get used to them and integrate them in his routine."

"And the money?" Kuroo predictably asked.

"I've got a good idea how to deal with it," Daichi assured them. "I've still gotta see if I can make it, though. I'll definitely have news by Saturday's session. And I can just text if anything comes up before that."

"True, true."

"Anyway!" Daichi cut the conversation off there. "Point is... Progress-wise, I haven't done nearly as much progress as you guys have. Yuu's problems are all chronic, so there are rarely any new developments to deal with. Our progress is maintenance, and so far, I think we've been doing okay. I think that even from the beginning on, he wasn't the problem, but I was. Considering that I was having trouble adapting to the fact that I not only had a son, but also had a son whom I had to raise alone. I think it was just the stress of having that thrust upon me that was problematic."

"And how do you feel about single parenthood now?" Suga asked with a fond look in his eyes.

"It's not as bad as I thought it'd be," Daichi laughed. "It probably felt like a weight chained to my leg at first, because I didn't want a kid to tie me down when I still didn't have my entire life figured out, but more and more, I'm realizing that parenthood isn't a burden, but an opportunity. Things aren't necessarily hard with Noya around, just a bit complicated. And on the other hand, I'm so happy having him around that I don't mind those complications. Obviously, single parenthood is not ideal. I'd still want a partner, if I could help it. But I'm just saying that it doesn't look hopeless anymore."

"You know, if you want a partner, all you gotta do is ask," Oikawa hummed. "I'd know!"

"Um, no you don't, because your definition of 'asking' is taking your date home on the first date," Kuroo shot back with his trademark provocative smirk on his face.

"Your definition of 'asking' is not asking before crashing someone's house! How about that?"

"But Doritos!"

"Guys!" Surprisingly, it was Suga who stepped in to calm them down, and they all turned to him, not missing the very obvious flush on his cheeks as he looked down. "Alright, let's just... go back to what we were doing before, okay?"

"Sure," the three in conflict replied, and then turned to Daichi.

(Who was sporting a similarly obvious blush on his cheeks. How cute. Oikawa felt like he'd be winning this bet).

"Anything else to add, Daichi? It's good that you're taking maintenance as progress. And I'm very happy you reconciled yourself with your circumstances," Suga coughed to clear his throat.

"No, I think that's about it. For now, I can only look forward to the future," Daichi shook his head.

"That's good," Suga nodded. "We'll be talking about our future next time, during our last meeting together. So as homework of some sort, I'd like all of you to make a plan of action of how you want to take control of some aspect of your life and change it, or maintain it. I want you to come up with goals for the near future, and goals for the later future, and tell me where you want to be in two weeks, six months, five years, and so on. But that's for next time, just to make our ending into a new beginning," he laughed. "For now, since we've done a recap of what's happened so far, let's top up on your childrens' milestones. Hinata and Noya in particular are going through a stage of rapid development right now, so maybe we can talk about those."

"Sure!" The others replied in tandem, but all Daichi could look at was Suga's smiling face. Soon, however, he turned his eyes away, towards Oikawa who took up the conversation first, and missed how for a second, Suga's eyes flicked towards him as well.

After the session, as they all began to pack to go and get their kids from the after-hours service, Daichi took his sweet time gathering his things, just to stay behind a bit. Talking about pasts and futures had given him even more incentive to live day to day, and to dive headfirst into new challenges, and he figured that he may as well just go with what he'd begun. Besides, it was the before-last time he'd be seeing the guys in a place like this, so there was no time better than this one.

Turning to Suga, who was just waiting for him to leave to lock up the meeting room, he took a deep breath, and looked him in the eye.

"Yes?" the young man asked, realizing that Daichi wanted to say something. "Did you wanna say something else? Something you didn't want the others to hear?"

"Kind of," Daichi chuckled a bit nervously, knowing that the others, especially Oikawa, would want to get their nose into this kind of business.

(Apparently, Oikawa held grudges for a very long time).

"Of course. You know I'm here for you if you need me to be," Suga nodded in utmost seriousness, before realizing what he'd said and loosening up a bit, kind of embarrassed.

"Yeah, I know," Daichi nodded, getting more and more nervous the more he idled. "I just had a question for you."

"Sure. How can I help?" the silver-haired teen brightened up, always ready to be useful to others. That was an admirable quality in him that Daichi appreciated a lot. Suga was dependable and kind-hearted. He really admired that in him.

"Well, it's not like... actual help or anything..." Daichi fumbled with his words a bit, glancing around to try and catch his train of thought, which was quickly derailing.

Out of the corner of his eye, he thought he saw Kuroo turn the corner and see them, but when he blinked, the other man was gone. He probably hadn't hallucinated (and Kuroo was probably on his way to tell the others what he'd seen), but it was still good to know they would be left alone and uninterrupted.

This was his chance.

"Do you wanna go have coffee with me tomorrow?" he blurted out as quickly as he could, feeling his face heat up a bit more. He suddenly found himself unable to look into Suga's eyes, afraid of what he would find. "Like... like friends or something, if you want! I mean, we've told you our deepest secrets and we don't know a lot about you, so like... yeah..." Daring to glance up briefly, he saw the tightness of Suga's pinched lips, and suddenly, his heart dropped. Quick, he needed a quick fix to his blunder. "I mean, if you want, I could invite the guys, too-"

"Stop," Suga cut him off a bit dryly.

"Sorry," Daichi immediately apologized, ready to dig a hole and crawl in it. "Sorry, forget what I said."

"No, I'm not gonna do that," Suga shook his head, and stared Daichi down. It took the older man a couple of seconds, but he straightened his back and hesitantly looked into Suga's eyes, finding them unreadable. "I just want to know, before agreeing. Would we be going exclusively as friends? Be honest."

"You seem awfully concerned about the answer I'll be giving," Daichi mumbled, slightly disheartened. "It's however you want it."

"Nah, it doesn't work that way," Suga cracked a wry smirk. "You've got more self-assurance than that, Daichi Sawamura. Are we going out for coffee as friends?"

Daichi bit his lip and took a deep breath, figuring that Suga had backed him into a corner anyway. And at this point, he only knew of one way that could get him out quickly and efficiently. He had to make his escape, and quick.

"No."

"No?" Suga seemed taken aback by how much conviction was in his voice. "No, like..."

"Like no, we wouldn't be going as friends," Daichi quickly clarified. "I want to take you on a date. Does tomorrow on your lunch break sound good?"

"Umm..." Suga took a step back, face suddenly all red, like he hadn't been expecting this at all, and played with his fingers a bit. "Umm... yeah, sure, that works." And then, a bit more confidently, with a small, absolutely lovely smile on his face. "Do you want to exchange phone numbers? I'll send you my lunch hours and we can see how we can work it out."

"Definitely," Daichi nodded enthusiastically, suddenly feeling ten times lighter. He let out a deep breath of relief and laughed. "Wow, that was tense. I'm really glad that's over with."

"You're the one who was tense!"

"You were the one making me tense!"

They both laughed, and in between the teases and the sound of their racing heartbeat in their respective ears, they exchanged phone numbers and began to walk towards the daycare area. There, they bid one another goodbye a bit awkwardly, and Daichi left to pick up Noya from Kenma as Suga left the building.

Noya must've noticed that his dad was beaming, because he seemed more excited than usual around him. And in turn, Noya's excitement was infectious, and made Daichi even happier.

"Daddy, you're smiling a lot today!" the kid noted that evening, after he took his purple puffer and got ready to explain what his blue puffer did.

"I'm going to go have coffee with Suga tomorrow, that's why. I'm happy," Daichi explained, surprising himself with how frankly he spoke of it.

"I wanna come!"

"You can't. It's during the day. You'll be in daycare."

"Aww... But it'll be lonely without me!" Yuu puffed out his cheeks, to Daichi's absolute amusement.

"You're silly," he teased, poking Noya's cheek. "I won't be lonely. Suga's with me, and I like Suga a lot."

"Oh." Noya stopped, and thought about this for a while. "So that means you're going to marry Suga?"

"What is it with you guys and us marrying people right off the bat?" Daichi laughed out loud this time, remembering how Oikawa had said Hinata had reacted to him dating Iwaizumi.

"That's what you do when you like someone, right?" Noya cocked his head innocently. "So does that Suga will be my new mommy? I want a mommy!"

"I know you do, kiddo," Daichi huffed, and bent down a bit to kiss Noya's forehead lovingly. "And if all goes well, you'll have one soon. Now. Tell me what your blue puffer does."

"If I get lots of trouble breathing when I'm outside or at daycare, I gotta take it to an adult so they can help me take it and it'll help me breathe again," Noya recited, playing with the blue puffer. "There, done."

"Very good, Noya," Daichi patted his head proudly. "It's good that you remember this. I guess it helps that you have to say it every single night, huh?"

"I guess," Noya shrugged, dropping his puffer and turning to pick up the book he'd picked as his bedtime story to leaf through it curiously.

"You're a good kid," Daichi sighed fondly, looking down at him lovingly. "And someday, I'm gonna figure out what's going on in that head of yours, and once I understand you better, I'm gonna make you the happiest kiddo on Earth, you hear me?"

"No one has yet fully realized the wealth of sympathy, kindness and generosity hidden in the soul of a child. The effort of every true education should be to unlock that treasure," Noya spoke out loud, looking at the pictures in his book, and at that moment, totally missed the look of shock on Daichi's face.

"Come again?" he asked, blinking to try and figure out if he'd just hallucinated, but Noya was still there, kicking his legs and looking at his picture book. "Noya, did you just... Do you know what you just said?"

"No," the kid shrugged, not looking away from his book. "But Kiyoko said it the other day and you said you liked it. What you said made me happy, so I said something that makes you happy, too."

"Umm..." Daichi swallowed thickly. "But that... how did you even..." Noya raised his head to look at him with his bright, innocent eyes, and his look confused Daichi even more. "How did you remember all that? Word for word, too? I thought you weren't even paying attention to what I was saying to Kiyoko!"

"I was listening," Noya frowned, huffing as if offended. "I always listen. It's boring all the time, though. Adults are boring and I don't wanna remember what they say," he began to explain, and slowly but surely, understanding began to dawn in Daichi's eyes. "You always say boring things so I don't remember them. But you liked what Kiyoko said so I remembered it for you, in case you forgot."

"Wow," was all Daichi found he could say, and a small, incredulous laugh left his mouth. "Wow. That's... that's kind of amazing. Is that why you can remember your puffers so well?"

"They're no fun," Noya huffed, crossing his arms. "But I listen a lot and you say all the time that they're so important, so I remember for you."

"Wait, so... You remember things that you want to remember? So you only listen when you wanna listen?" Daichi clarified.

"I always listen!" Noya frowned. "If it's boring, I won't remember, that's all. I remember a lot of cool stuff."

"Wow." Daichi repeated, still taken aback by this sudden rush of information. "So... do you remember stuff you liked?"

"Yeah."

"Can you say a line from Aladdin? Like... one of the genie's lines?"

"Oh, Al. I'm getting kinda fond of you, kid. Not that I wanna pick out curtains or anything," Noya recited nonchalantly, without even hesitating, and looked back at his book, missing the incredulous look on his father's face.

"How about... what Hinata said to you when he gave you your birthday gift at your party?"

"He said that the pyjamas had space men on it and that if I wore them, I'd be a space man, too, and he would be a space man, and his daddy would be an alien, so we'd have to catch him," Noya hummed.

"Oh my god," Daichi snorted behind his hand, genuinely impressed. "Okay, how about what I said about cleaning up your toys this morning?"

"I don't know."

"You don't remember?"

"Can you read me this book?" Noya quickly jumped to the next topic, and this time, Daichi recognized this as a new conversation stemming from the fact that he had listened to the last one, but hadn't found it interesting enough to want to answer it.

"You're amazing," he found himself saying, leaning down to kiss Noya's forehead fiercely one last time. "You're really, really amazing. I'm so happy you've told me this. I finally feel like I can totally understand you now."

"Okay, but you're gonna read me this book, right?" Noya pressed, handing him the thin book he'd picked out.

"Of course I will," Daichi grinned, but couldn't resist picking on his son one last time. "But only if you can tell me one of your favourite lines from the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles."

"Hmm..." Noya gave it a thought, and then turned to grin brilliantly at his father. "I am proud of you, my sons. Tonight you have learned the final and greatest truth of the Ninja: that ultimate mastering comes not from the body, but from the mind. Together, there is nothing your four minds cannot accomplish. Help each other, draw upon one another, and always remember the power that binds you. The same is what brought me here tonight, that which I gladly return with my final words: I love you all, my sons."

"I adore you, Noya," Daichi grinned, and pressed his son to his chest.

"Splinter says that to the Ninja Turtles," Noya explained, smashed against his father's chest, and Daichi laughed until there were tears in the corners of his eyes, and his cheeks hurt from grinning so widely.

"And I'm gonna say it to you," Daichi returned, pushing hims back just to kiss his forehead, then his nose, then his cheeks. "I love you, my son."

"I love you, too, dad," Noya hummed contentedly, and put his tiny, bony arms on his dad's large, warm, comforting frame. And Daichi was so incredibly relieved to notice that this time, Noya had not changed the subject.

...-...-...-...-...-...-...

**Week 6- Friday**

To say that Daichi was nervous was an understatement. Heck, he probably hadn't been this nervous since the first time he held a baby Yuu in his arms. Even then, it hadn't been that bad. This time, Daichi was sure that his heart was about to pump out of his chest.

"Dad," Noya whined, playing with the buttons on his nice plaid shirt. "Come play with me."

"I can't right now, Noya," Daichi refused apologetically. "There's food in the oven and I can't leave it unattended."

"Fine," Noya huffed indignantly and turned to leave. "I'll play alone."

"Don't start a big game right now. We're gonna have dinner soon, okay?" Daichi instructed.

"Mhm."

Huffing in exhaustion and also a bit in amusement, he shook his head and headed to the kitchen as his son headed to his room. The roast was in the oven, the rice was almost done cooking, and the sautéed vegetables were good to go. The salad was on the side and he just had to mix in the dressing, and he'd cut up enough bread with a bit of softened butter in a dish. The table was set with a lit candle, on top of everything, and he had already poured himself a drink.

He didn't think he'd forgotten anything. He couldn't have. He'd prepared for this moment for three whole days, after all.

The doorbell rang just as he peeked into the oven again, for a lack of something better to do.

This was it. Taking his dorky-looking apron off of his nice button-up shirt, he rolled up his sleeves, grabbed his glass of gin and tonic, and made his way to the front door. On the way there, he stopped briefly in front of the mirror in the hallway and fixed his hair (which consisted in him ruffling it until it looked slightly presentable), and then took a large mouthful of alcohol before unlocking the door.

(He felt like he'd need it).

The door opened, and Daichi was momentarily struck in place by the sight that awaited him.

He hadn't seen her in what felt like years. In what had probably been a whole year, even. And his heart skipped a bit when she looked up from her purse at him, and smiled softly, a bit nervously.

"Hey, Daichi," she greeted. "It's been a while."

"Yui," he greeted right back with a nod of his head, feeling weird saying the familiar, but estranged name again. "You're still as pretty as ever."

"Stop that, you sweet-talker," she laughed, high and genuine, and for a moment, Daichi remember what she used to be like. Before everything happened between them.

"Come on in," Daichi invited her. "Can I get you something to drink?"

"Whatever you're having," she replied lightly, stepped inside the apartment and removing her shoes, instead wearing a pair of indoors shoes. Then, she followed Daichi to the kitchen where he busied himself making another gin and tonic. "Hmm, smells good in here."

"The roast is almost done," Daichi answered, still feeling a bit bizarre, but going with it anyway. "I figured I may as well go all out, since this was an occasion to go all-out for."

"Well, cheers to meeting again after so long," she began, accepting the glass of alcohol from Daichi and clinking her glass against his. "You know, I was really surprised. When I got your text, I mean."

"I surprised myself when I sent it," Daichi shrugged, hiding his smirk behind his glass by drinking. "I figured it was about time we caught up."

"I'm sure that's not all," Yui chuckled, and at Daichi's wide-eyed expression, laughed even harder. "Relax, Daichi. I know you didn't call me over cause you missed me."

"Well I mean... maybe I did?" Daichi tried, a bit embarrassed, but she rolled her eyes in amusement.

"It's okay," she assured him. "I get it. We didn't start off on the best terms, and we didn't finish on the best terms either. But I'm almost through law school now, so there's not a lot you can hide from me with a pokerface like that."

"I'll work on it," Daichi chuckled, and turned to check on the rice, if only to break away from Yui for a second.

Just so he would look away from his ex for a moment, and give him enough time to gather his bearings.

"We can talk about whatever it is you wanted later, if you want," Yui suggested in a lower tone, sensing his discomfort. "Over coffee or something. Don't sweat it. For now, we can just catch up a bit."

"Let's talk over dinner," Daichi answered to that, turning to give her a small smile. "Do you want to sit? I'll get Noya."

"Noya..." she chuckled. "Yuu... Wow. I haven't seen him in a while, either."

"Must've been a whole year," Daichi hummed in agreement, though his tone held just a bit of bitterness in it, and they both knew it. "He's changed. His birthday just passed, and he's 4 now."

"You should've told me," Yui gasped. "I would've gotten him a present."

"He didn't ask for much, anyway," Daichi shrugged, not mentioning how his sick kid had asked to be healthy for his birthday. "I'll call him."

"Sure," the woman nodded, and sat at the table.

"Yuu! Dinner's ready, please come here," Daichi called, turning off the stove.

"I'm playing!" The small child yelled back from his room, startling Yui visibly.

"I've got a surprise for you. Someone's here to see you," Daichi called back, turning to go and physically fetch him if he didn't get moving soon enough.

Thankfully, the promise of a surprise was enough to get the kid on his feet and soon enough, he was running into the dining room.

"Is it pizza? Are we having pizza for dinner?" he asked excitedly, but then, his eyes caught the woman sitting at the table and he turned to stare at her.

One, two...

"Mom...?"

"Hi, Yuu," the woman tried a smile that looked more uncomfortable than anything else. "It's me."

And Yuu stared. Yuu stared until Daichi suddenly felt afraid that something had gone wrong in his head.

"Why are you here?" he finally asked, not seemingly acting out of malicious intent, but his innocent words coming of as such nonetheless.

"Daddy invited me for dinner," Yui replied, not sure what to say. "It's nice to see you again."

Noya seemed to think about that one for a while. And then, finally, he conceded.

"Yeah. I'm four years old now!"

"Daddy told me," she chuckled. "You're such a big boy already."

"My birthday party was the best. Daddy made hot dogs and all my friends came and we played in the park."

"How about you explain all that over dinner?" Daichi suggested, pulling up Noya's chair. "Come and sit and let's eat."

"Okay," the child hummed, making his way to his chair and climbing up on it. He then proceeded to blabber about his friends, and daycare, and his toys, and so on. Daichi took the opportunity to look at Yui's face, remind himself of his choices and how they'd all led him to this very moment, and see how the mother of his son was feeling around her child, whom she hadn't been fond of to start with.

She seemed to be alright, though. The little sparkle in her eyes as she listened to Noya speak proved as much.

"Now you're gonna be nice and eat everything on your plate, right Noya?" Daichi prompted, setting down a slice of roast on his son's plate, next to the spoonful of rice and the spoonful of vegetables.

"It's too much," the child complained, immediately getting a small spoonful of rice.

"It's nothing. Now the sooner you finish eating, the sooner you can go play," Daichi convinced him, glad to see him put something in his mouth.

"Can mommy play with me?" he suddenly asked, looking at Yui with his wide, bright eyes. And Daichi turned to her as well, curious about her answer.

She seemed to be shocked by the question, but after thinking about it for a few seconds, let a fond smile split her face, and nodded.

"I'd love to play with you, Yuu."

And Yuu grinned. Daichi thought he'd have mixed feelings about this whole get-together, but right now, seeing the joy on Noya's face, he could only find himself grinning as well.

...-...-...-...-...-...-...

Throughout dinner, Daichi knew he was being observed. Every time he interacted with Noya, either to cut his food or tell him to eat or comment on something he said, he could feel his ex's gaze on him, as if trying to size him up. Daichi wasn't nervous, because he knew he was doing everything right, but he sure as hell was curious. Yui said nothing, however.

Whilst Daichi cleaned up and set up the apple pie he'd bought for dessert, she played with Noya in his room, and by the lack of complaining or yelling, Daichi could guess that they were having a good time. Or a passable one, at least.

He needed a passing grade for this dinner, he really did.

His phone buzzed in his pocket, and he momentarily dropped the dirty dishes he was cleaning to check who'd texted him.

To: _User_

From: _Bokuto_

_Hey man wanna join us on skype rn? Were gonna put the kids to bed + watch a movie. pretty boy had a bad day and requested the notebook, u in?_

Chuckling, Daichi quickly typed his reply.

To: _Bokuto_

From: _User_

_Can't tonight. Have a guest over._

The reply came almost instantaneously.

To: _User_

From: _Bokuto_

_IS IT SUGA OH MY GOD I TOTALLY CALLED IT_

"Ugh..." Daichi groaned to himself, momentarily considering not answering his friend. However, if he didn't answer now, he knew the boys would be hounding him throughout the evening for details.

To: _Bokuto_

From: _User_

_It's my ex. I had to talk to her. Sorry I can't talk, I'll tell you guys later._

That seemed to satisfy Bokuto, as the man only sent him a text with an inane amount of emoticons in it before letting it drop. Surely they'd go ahead and make up all sorts of stuff about the situation during their Skype call. If they weren't too busy crying at The Notebook.

(Okay, so maybe Daichi had already seen it. Maybe he'd even cried. Sue him).

"Hey dad!" Noya suddenly called from the hallway and Daichi pocketed his phone to turn to look at him.

"Yeah?"

"Look, I drew this with mommy!" the kid exclaimed, brandishing a paper up to Daichi proudly.

"It's cute," Daichi hummed even before taking a look at it, but when he did, he found himself struck in place by what was on the paper.

"That's me in the middle," Noya began to explain when Daichi fell silent. "There's you on one side and mommy on the other. We're in the park and there's a dog, too! We're playing together and having a lot of fun."

"This is nice, Noya." Daichi hoped his voice didn't tremble. "It's a lovely drawing."

"So now we can be a family again," the kid hummed in satisfaction and took his drawing back, holding it tightly as if he cherished it dearly.

Behind him, Yui looked just as conflicted, but couldn't help but smile fondly at her son. She and Daichi exchanged a loaded glance that definitely promised a conversation later on.

(Daichi was definitely not looking forward to 'later on').

"Why don't you come have some apple pie for now, hmm?" he finally settled for answering, and again was glad that Noya had a short attention span when the kid practically sprinted to his chair.

"Yey, dessert! I want milk, too!"

"Only if you ask nicely," Daichi reprimanded, heading for the fridge anyway, and feeling Yui's eyes on his back when he turned to pour Noya his glass of milk.

They sat down for dessert as well, and this time it was Yui's turn to steal the conversation. She spoke about law school, her progress, her friends, her parents, and through it all, Daichi could not help but feel a little bit bitter. After all, she had only come this far because she'd dropped everything Noya-related onto Daichi.

But then again, Daichi felt a bit shallow for being jealous of her success. Just because he had Noya to take care of, though, it didn't mean that he wasn't destined for success either.

Coffee came after dessert, but just as Daichi had begun to dread, Noya's bedtime quickly approached until he couldn't put it off anymore.

"Okay, I'm gonna go get Noya ready for sleep," Daichi announced, glancing at the clock.

"I don't wanna sleep!" the child immediately protested.

"Listen to daddy, Yuu. It's bedtime," Yui chided gently, and Noya huffed in defeat.

"Fiiine... I want a story though. And mommy can tell it."

"Sure," Daichi replied just a tad bit too dryly, and ushered him off to his room. "Now let's go get dressed."

"I'll clean up around here," Yui volunteered, staying back in the kitchen, and Daichi was grateful that she hadn't volunteered to intrude upon their nighttime ritual.

The whole thing was a quiet affair. Daichi only asked one question throughout the whole thing, when Noya was washing his hands after using the bathroom.

"Yuu... What do you think of mommy?" he asked, quietly, as if afraid that Yui would hear him, and would hear the hesitancy in his tone.

"I'm happy she came back for me," Noya cooed, and promptly rubbed soap all over his mouth with a giggle.

Daichi took it as the end to their extremely brief and one-sided conversation. Anyway, he wouldn't have known what to reply.

Yui was sitting on the couch, sipping on her coffee when Noya came waddling back in, carrying his puffers.

"Mommy, look," he began even before Daichi prompted him to. "The purple puffer is the one I have to take now, but the blue puffer is the one I have to take everywhere with me, and if it suddenly becomes hard to breathe, I have to take it to an adult and they'll help me take it so I can breathe again."

"That's... that's good," Yui mumbled, not sure how to praise him. "I mean... You know everything by heart, that's really good. Good job, Yuu."

"I say it every night," Noya explained proudly, and then handed his purple puffer to Daichi so he could prepare the AeroChamber.

Yui watched with interest as the child took his medication, and then left Daichi to clean it up while he climbed onto the couch, next to his mother.

"Tell me a story!" he demanded eagerly, looking up at his mom expectantly.

"Uhh... How about... How about I tell you about Hansel and Gretel?" she suggested.

"I don't know them," Noya shrugged, and turned to Daichi when the man re-entered the living room. "Dad! Come sit next to me! Mommy is gonna tell us about Han and Grel."

"Hansel and Gretel," Daichi chuckled, plopping down nex to Noya and putting an arm around his son's shoulders. "You'll like this one."

And he did. He 'ooh'ed and 'aah'ed at the various descriptions of candy houses and chocolate furniture that Yui was making up as she went, and protested loudly when the protagonists were about to be eaten by the evil witch. Daichi just watched him wiggle around in enthusiasm, and tried to remember if he'd ever gotten such a large reaction to any of his stories.

(He wasn't jealous. He promised himself he wouldn't be. This wasn't a competition between himself and Yui to see who got more of Noya's love).

(And yet, he couldn't but feel a little bit hurt when Noya pulled away from him to cuddle against his mother instead).

It seemed like forever before the story was over, and Noya enthusiastically demanded another one. This time, Daichi was happy to step in.

"That's enough for one night," he decided, getting up and lifting Noya off the couch, into his arms. "Now you gotta go to sleep, little man."

"Aww," the little boy frowned comically, but then grinned again. "Can mommy tuck me in?"

And it must have shown on his face this time. There must have been something that had leaked from behind his cool, neutral mask, because Yui was quick to shake her head.

"No, no... I think daddy's better for tucking you in. Good night, Yuu," she wished, not moving from her spot on the couch.

"Come on," Daichi simply replied, quickly stepping away from Yui, more for himself than for Noya.

"Night mom," Yuu waved from over his shoulder before they disappeared into his room.

Daichi quickly put him to bed and tucked him in, turning on the night light and turning off the ceiling lights.

"Good night, Noya," he wished, bending down to kiss his son's forehead.

"Night dad!" the little boy answered, putting a hand on his dad's face as if to show his affection.

"I love you," he whispered on a second thought, as if he was afraid of that fact being forgotten, and turned to leave.

"I love you, too," Noya called out from within the bed. And just as he was about to leave and close the door behind him, Noya seemed to understand the atmosphere, and shifted in his bed again. "You're the best dad in the whole wide world!"

And that made Daichi feel a bit better. Just a bit better.

"Thanks. Good night," he chuckled softly, and exited.

Yui was still on the couch when he returned to the living room, dutifully waiting for him. She raised her gaze from her phone when he arrived, and smiled to him.

"I'm sorry," she immediately apologized, genuinely looking guilty. "I... I didn't think he'd still like me that much..."

"Well, he did spend a good two years with you before I came into the picture at all. It's normal that he's got stronger ties to you," Daichi mumbled, sitting down on the other end of the couch.

"But you've been taking care of him all this time. That has to count for so much more," she mumbled.

"Whatever."

"So what's with the puffers?" she asked, trying to change the subject.

"Asthma," Daichi answered briefly. "It's a recent diagnosis. He has to take medication and carry around his emergency puffer for it."

"Oh," the woman bit her lip. "I... I didn't know."

"Hmm."

There was a small, awkward silence.

"He's... he's just as I remembered him," Yui laughed, trying to ease the tension, but the only thing Daichi could think of was the conversation with the pediatrician.

"Yeah. He's not growing. He has a condition called growth hormone deficiency, so his body's not producing enough hormones for him to develop his bone structure. On top of that, he's not eating, for some reason, so he's not gaining weight, either. So yeah, he is indeed just as you remembered him," Daichi explained, if not without a tinge of irritation to his tone.

Yui was a lawyer in the making. She caught on immediately.

"Look," she began with a heavy sigh, staring straight at Daichi. "I get it. I'm not eligible for the mom of the year award."

"Hmm," Daichi simply hummed, looking at her and trying to see where she was going.

"Noya was... the biggest surprise in my life. And I had so many plans that I couldn't throw out the window because of one mistake," she explained.

"Yuu wasn't a mistake," Daichi defended quickly.

"He was," Yui reaffirmed. "Daichi, don't kid yourself. He was a mistake. That's why I pushed for the premature delivery."

"That's probably why he has so many health issues, you know," Daichi commented, not wanting to guilt trip her too badly, but seeing the pain flash on her face at his words. "Sorry... sorry, that was a bit harsh..."

"I deserve it..." she finally mumbled. "Yuu was a mistake, but not finishing the pregnancy was mine specifically."

Daichi was taken aback by that, and shut up to let her speak.

"I panicked. I panicked, and I figured that my life would be over if I gave birth to a kid. I was scared and didn't know what to do," she sighed, turning her gaze away from Daichi guiltily. "I guess I never had the chance to admit that I was wrong. Seeing him again after so long is... is different. I'm seeing him in a whole new light, and... and I feel guilty for being selfish and for being the cause of so many problems."

"Well, I mean... it's not all THAT bad..." Daichi mumbled, now his turn to feel guilty for guilt-tripping his ex. "I spoke with the pediatrician and he's got a treatment for his GHD..."

"No, I mean... It could have been prevented if I hadn't been selfish..." she let out a deep breath and then look straight at Daichi in all seriousness. "But at the same time, I've reached a point in my life that I would never have reached if I'd completed the pregnancy, and had become a full-time mom. So a part of me is glad I was selfish."

"Well... This issue was never a black-or-white issue," Daichi waved her off. "I'm glad you admitted you were at fault. Hell, I'm probably at fault for leaving you to deal with him alone the first couple of years, too. But that's the past. I'm more concerned about the future."

"Well I'm glad we could work that out anyway," she replied, and then shifted on the couch to look at him better. "So. What's this future you're concerned about?"

"GHD," Daichi offered very briefly. "I'm not gonna lie, Yui. I called you now, of all times, because you're a part of the Michimiya-Nishinoya household, and-"

"It's just Michimiya," Yui quickly interrupted, rubbing the back of her neck. "My father passed away a while back so I'd rather just go by my mother's name."

"Oh..." Daichi blushed in embarrassment. "Oh... I'm sorry for your loss. I hadn't heard."

"It's fine," she waved him off a bit uncomfortably. "Cancer, y'know how it is. It's hard, but he's given me a new outlook on life and how we protect our health. So that's why seeing Yuu kind of... I mean, I guess I'm just a little more determined now that I've seen him again."

"Well... I suppose we're on the same page, then," Daichi smiled softly at her, briefly reaching over and caressing the hand she had out on the couch. She looked up at him, eyes a bit wet, but looking wholly grateful for the gesture of support. "I'm gonna be really honest with this. Noya's treatment is fail-proof, but it's complicated. It's a hormone injection every day until he stops growing. And it's really expensive."

"How much?"

"10,000$ to 30,000$ per year."

"Consider it covered," she quickly nodded, smiling when she noticed his eyes open a fraction larger than before. "What? That's why you called me over, didn't you?"

"W-Well, I mean... I thought I'd have to justify myself... It does seem a bit shallow to reconnect with you just over money..." Daichi muttered, a bit embarrassed still.

"It's not just over money," Yui corrected him. "It's over our son's health. And I didn't ever think I'd want to be a mother, but... But I think I do. And if my checkbook is my entrance to regain my right to motherhood, then so be it."

"So you'll literally cover all the treatment fees?"

"Yeah."

"For all twelve or fourteen years he still has to go?"

"Yeah."

"Can you afford it, even?"

"I'm a Michimiya, remember?" Yui laughed. "And I'm gonna be a lawyer. My new boyfriend is in med school. My finances are over the roof, Dai. It's okay."

Hearing the old nickname made him feel a rush of nostalgia. But most of all, it made him feel a bit pissed, because it sounded awfully informal, and she didn't have that right anymore.

"It'll give my mother peace of mind, too," she continued. "Remember how she was the one who pushed me to take care of Noya and was like a second mother to him until we got a hold of you? She'll be glad to know I want to continue where I left off."

"Well, I don't wanna be rude or anything, but you can't just waltz back in here and ask to be Noya's mom again," Daichi replied a bit bitterly. "You kind of gave up that right along with your legal guardianship of him."

"I know," she nodded, eyes downcast, but with a sad smile on her face. "And I don't want it back. Heck, I can't pretend I'll be the mother he wants me to be. But I'm also not going to be a stranger. I'm not asking you to split custody with me. I'm just saying... if you need a babysitter, or someone behind the scenes to help you out..."

"And is this your way or making up for all the time you were gone?" Daichi crossed his arms.

"Mhm," Yui looked up at him and offered him a smile. "But most of all, it's my way of making up for the trouble and the pain I caused both of you. It mustn't have been easy to be a single parent, and I know a little part of it, but even I had my parents' help back then..."

"I had help, too," Daichi admitted. "A support group for young, new single fathers. I met three guys like me and they're fantastic friends. The support group leader is really educated and caring, too. They've all helped pull me through."

"That's really great. I'm glad you had the support you deserved," she smiled, genuinely happy for him. "So... no new girlfriend yet?"

"Uhh..." Daichi suddenly blushed as only one face came to mind at the thought. Yui laughed at his red face, and he huffed indignantly. "Don't laugh, come on..."

"Sorry. You're just cute when you're flustered," she giggled behind her hand. "Who is she?"

"He," Daichi corrected in a low voice. "I... I have a boyfriend. His name's Koushi Sugawara, and he's the leader of the support group."

"Ahh, I see," she nodded comprehendingly. "Well, I'm very happy for you. It's really wonderful to see that you're doing well." She suddenly put a hand out and set it on his shoulder, squeezing lightly. "It really is. I'm really happy."

"Thanks. I'm glad you're doing well as well," Daichi gently put his hand on hers and rubbed a few circles on her soft skin before they both distanced themselves from one another again.

"I'm glad we were able to reconnect and not stay at odds with one another," she admitted. "Thank you for organizing this. It's exactly the kind of closure I needed."

"Well, thanks for accepting the invitation," Daichi smiled to her, feeling more at ease than he had in a long time. "So many people end off on a bad note with their exes. I figured I didn't wanna be one of them."

"You figured right," she teased, getting up from the couch. "However, I have to get home. It's already a bit late. But thanks again for having me."

"It was a pleasure," Daichi got up as well. "Let me accompany you to the door."

"What a gentleman," she rolled her eyes. "I hope you treat your new boyfriend like this."

"Yui, stop," Daichi whined slightly, feeling the blush return to his cheeks.

"How long has it been, anyway?"

"I've known him for 6 weeks now... We decided to become a couple yesterday," Daichi admitted, still a bit shy about all matters related to Suga.

"That's wonderful! Long life to you guys," she wished in good faith, changing her indoors shoes for her outdoors shoes at the entrance.

"Same to you and your boyfriend," Daichi wished good-naturedly in return. "Let's catch up some more another time, alright?"

"You have my phone number and are apparently not a stranger to using it," Yui laughed, opening the door.

"You gotta do what you gotta do when it comes to your kids, you know," Daichi shrugged, escorting her through the door.

"No, I don't," she winced a bit sheepishly. "But I'm gonna learn and I'm gonna figure it out. Thank you for this opportunity, Daichi."

"And thank you for you help, Yui. I couldn't have done it without you," Daichi admitted, and when she made a slight move towards him, he immediately melted back into their old routine, the one they'd established almost half a decade ago, and drew her into his arms.

It felt nice, and familiar, but also foreign. And something must have tugged at them both because they both pulled away simultaneously, though Daichi was glad to see that neither of them felt awkward about it.

"Safe trip home," he wished her, waving lightly.

"Thanks. Keep in touch," she returned, and then headed down the hall.

Daichi waited until she was out of sight to close the door. He then took a moment to go through everything that had happened in his mind, and at the end of it, let a brilliant grin split his face.

He'd done it. Noya was saved.

And his mind was just a little bit more at peace.

...-...-...-...-...-...-...

**Week 6- Saturday**

This would be the last time Daichi walked through the doors to the meeting room to find the boys looking right back at him in various states of being. And it was kind of sad to realize that.

"Daichi!" Kuroo called first, obviously intent on asking him something, when he noticed that Suga had entered right behind him. "Ohoho, wait a minute... What's this? Did you guys come here together?"

"Huh?" Suga exclaimed, confused. "I mean... we just met in front of the centre and made our way here together..."

"You took your sweet time," Bokuto teased, checking his phone. "You're seven minutes late! Were you guys too busy to rush or something?"

"Bokuto!" It was now Daichi's turn to exclaim, a blush creeping on his cheeks at their insinuations.

"Okay but no joke though," Oikawa interjected, looking tired and worn out but still amused as hell. "You two are an item, right? There's no way you wouldn't be. It's the last day and therefore your last chance to get together!"

"Daichi! Confess your undying love for Suga right now!" Bokuto added, only helping in making Daichi blush harder.

"You guys..." he began, trying to quiet them, but surprisingly enough, Suga's laughter interrupted them all. He turned to see Suga looking genuinely amused, and froze when he moved next to him, and slipped his hand in his.

"You're so immature," the student chided. "We're already a thing. Daichi didn't tell you?"

"Apparently not," Kuroo pouted. "Wait, so when did you guys get together? Was it on Thursday? I saw you guys after the session and it seemed like you were talking about something pretty damn important."

"Were you spying on us, Kuroo?" Suga raised an eyebrow. "That's rude, don't you think?"

"I had to know. So when did you guys get together?"

"What's it to you?" Daichi asked, already guessing.

"Just tell us!"

"... On Friday..." the black-haired man finally admitted, his embarrassment only cut short by a resonating screech of victory from Oikawa.

"I win!" he exclaimed, jumping out of his seat. "Suck my dick, I win! Pay up, you guys. I'm buying Iwaizumi a box of chocolate with your money reeking of defeat!"

"You got your revenge, Oikawa," Bokuto whined, pulling a 10$ bill out of his wallet. "Will you just let the Iwaizumi thing drop?"

"Never," the brunet hummed as he collected his spoils, and then turned to Daichi, who was deadpanning at all of them. "Oh. I guess you figured it out. We were betting on you guys."

"I... kinda saw that coming," Daichi sighed and rubbed his forehead, only finding solace in Suga's amused chuckling. The latter seemed unaffected by his friends' behaviour, and actually seemed very at ease with it. Daichi supposed it was a good thing.

"Well, now that Oikawa got his well-earned revenge," Suga began, pulling Daichi towards their usual seats for the last time. "How about we get going on our last ever support group meeting?"

"This is so bittersweet," Oikawa commented. "Oh man. I'm actually gonna miss these meetings."

"Well it's not like we're totally cut off from one another after this," Kuroo noted. "Any time you wanna watch The Notebook over Skype and cry your eyes out, I'm down."

"Like you didn't cry, either," the brunet threw back.

"Never said I didn't," Kuroo smirked.

"Alright, alright," Suga got their attention again. "Let's get the business over with. And if you guys are free after this and we finish early enough for Kuroo, we can all go grab some coffee with the kids."

"Good idea!" Bokuto cheered, always down to have a good time. "So. What're we talking about today?"

"Well, I was thinking of closing off with an opening," Suga explained. "I hope you all did your homework. Last Thursday, we talked about where we began and how far we've come. Today, I want us all to glance at the future and talk about our plans for improvement, for change, and so on."

"I want to start this time," Daichi volunteered. "I've got really good news."

"Did you win the lottery?" Oikawa teased.

"Almost. But not quite," Daichi chuckled. "Nah. I bet Bokuto told you guys I had company over last night."

"Yeah."

"I had my ex over for dinner," Daichi continued, mostly to clarify for Suga, who was not in the loop. To his credit, the poor guy only seemed a little bit taken aback. "I mentioned before that she was born in a really really rich family, and she's in law school now. So we reconciled, and she agreed to pay all of Yuu's medical expenses for the hormone therapy."

"What?" Bokuto gasped. "Seriously? That's so great! All of them? For like... the next fourteen years?"

"Yup," Daichi grinned, the news finally sinking in. "Noya's gonna have the medical treatment he deserves and I don't have to worry about being unable to pay it."

"That's... that's wonderful," Kuroo smiled at him encouragingly. "And you've made up with your ex, too, by the sound of it. You've been productive."

"Yeah. Noya was really glad to see his mother again and really missed her, but although she wants to see him more often, she's not going to take back her custody rights. I think that's fine," he explained.

"That's really great!" Suga threw in his two cents. "I'm so happy for you."

"Yeah. I needed the closure with her and was able to move on," Daichi nodded in good spirits, and under the table, searched for Suga's hand to take in his. "I'm really happy with how everything's turned out. So here we go. My plan for the future is to keep moving forward and deal with everything day to day. I'm going to get Noya his hormone therapy, work with the social worker to figure out his other issues, and make him as happy as possible despite his health. With Yui now back in the picture, I also want to reconsider my options for going back to school and finishing my degree so I can get a better and more stable job. And finally, I want to take things slow with Suga, because as kind-hearted as he is, I don't think it'll be easy for him to adapt to dating someone who has a son like Noya around," he laughed.

"Dai!" Suga squeaked in embarrassment, laughing along with everyone else when they all reacted to Daichi's comment. And this time, Daichi was so glad to hear the nickname come from Suga's mouth. It felt so right. "You're so embarrassing!"

"Embarrassing you is also a plan for the future," Daichi hummed, squeezing his hand under the table. "But it'll be fun, I promise. And it'll be hard, maybe, probably, but we'll make it."

"Cheesy. Cheesy, but cute," Suga chuckled, cheeks red, and then turned to the others. "Alright. Who goes next?"

"I'll go," Kuroo volunteered. "So my plan for the future is to start making investments. I've thought about it for a while, but I can't keep living on minimum wage all my life. So over the summer, I'm going to ask for maximum hours at my two jobs, and find a new one if I can, and just work like there is no tomorrow." Noticing the others' unsure glances, though, he quickly brushed their uncertainty off. "No worries, though! It's all in good name. I want to make a ton of money now and then drop two jobs, and reduce the last one to part-time. And then, in the fall, I want to apply to a technical program. That way, I can work fresh out of college and I can make do without university."

"Will you be okay with that?" Oikawa asked, worried.

"Probably not. I'm going to check scholarships and grants, though, and if that doesn't work, student loans. As for the stockpiled money, it's gonna be a bit draconian for a while, so just rent, food, and daycare, but I know Kei doesn't mind, so I won't mind, either," Kuroo shrugged. "It's not ideal, but it's all I can come up with. I can't wait for Tsukki to go to kindergarten to return to college, so I have to do it now. But hey, it'll work out. I know it will. Tsukki and I have gone through a lot of hardships together, and if we've made it past a family death, borderline finances, mental breakdowns and abandonment issues, there no way that we're going to back down from this new and promising challenge."

"All the best," Daichi wished him sincerely. "You and Tsukki are a brand of strong that is hard to find and even harder to lose. But if you ever need help..."

"I know. I can definitely count on you guys," the other man grinned brightly.

"Good luck, Kuroo. That's a tough and ambitious plan you've set up, but with someone as persevering as you, I'm not worried," Suga smiled. "Next?"

"My turn," Bokuto called out. "Things are looking up on my end and my plan is to keep going all the way until everything is right as rain again!" He took a moment to think. "Though that's probably impossible... But impossible isn't a word I like to use."

"You're so excited, bro," Kuroo commented. "What's up?"

"Keiji spoke to me last night," Bokuto buzzed happily. "He had a nightmare, so he came to see me, and willingly talked about some memories that were bothering him. And I mean... a couple of weeks ago, he had trouble saying good morning to me, and now he's opening up to me out of his own free will. It's really, really amazing."

"That really is impressive, Bokuto," Suga cheered. "But you're even more incredible, for being able to make an abused child feel safe again, and safe enough to talk about his trauma, at that, too. You can definitely celebrate this victory as your own."

"It's our victory," Bokuto corrected. "It's so great to be able to see a light at the end of the tunnel. So we're both gonna keep heading in that direction. My plan for the future is to follow up with Keiji's social worker and see if there's anything I can do to ease communication between us. He's given me a chance and I'm not gonna let him down. I also know that kids do a lot of therapy through play, so I wanna learn more about that so I can do some play-therapy with Keiji at home as well. Other than that, I think I want to take him out more often and encourage him to mingle with other kids his age. If you guys can bring your kids, too, that'd be easier for him, since he'll have more familiar faces. But either way, he'll be rooming with Kei soon enough, so I think sharing a space and lifestyle with a kid almost his age will do wonders for his social skills. And of course, I have Kenma in on my ultimate plot to get Keiji to make friends, and he promised to make sure that during gym time, Keiji plays with other kids rather than sit alone in a corner."

"What about you?" Suga asked. "You mentioned last time that you were feeling uncomfortable with yourself as well. Do you have any plans for that?"

"I thought of a therapist, but I figured I wasn't bad enough for one. Kuroo has already agreed to be an ear for if I ever really need to confide, and vice versa, but I think most of all, I'll be working to overcome my own stressors and move on past my fears. I'm gonna pick up yoga, for example, and yes that was an invitation to everybody interested."

"I'm so down for yoga!" Oikawa exclaimed. "Gimme your schedule and I'll match it."

"Awesome," Bokuto grinned. "I think I just need to learn some stress management tricks, and I'm good for a lot of concerns on my end. And again, sharing a household with someone I trust is definitely gonna do wonders to make me feel safe again. Career-wise... I'm not really interested in going back to college. The whole business the first time kinda left a sour taste in my mouth. I'm happy with the job I have right now, and I know that with more experience I can climb the ladder a bit. I'll never be a CEO, but hey, I never asked to be, either. So that's my plan. Love my kid enough to compensate for all the times he's been hurt in the past, and hold his hand as he moves past the bad memories and makes new, memorable ones instead. And along every step of the way, I'll probably find myself as well."

"That sounds like one hell of a plan," Suga commented. "Good for you, Bokuto. Those are some very concrete actions. And it's really wonderful that you've found solace with Kuroo. You guys ended up being so great for one another."

"We're almost married," Kuroo hummed amusedly.

"Almost. Kuroo's cheating on me with his work," Bokuto winked at Kuroo, who laughed.

"Don't be like that, baby."

"Come home more often, then, honey!"

"Alright, married couple. Take it outside," Daichi snickered behind his hand.

"Maybe after Oikawa's done talking," Kuroo winked back at Bokuto, who mimicked a swoon, and then laughed.

"Right," the brunet began once the attention was on him. "So I decided that my goal for the future is to reconstruct a family for Hinata. I know that the single parent model is a viable one for a lot of families, but Hinata's still stuck in the mindset that a biparental, nuclear family is the most comfortable one. And if that's what he wants, then I'll give it to him. I can't erase the fact that he felt hated and abandoned by his mom, whom he adored so much, but I can definitely give him a new family to feel loved in."

"With Iwaizumi?" Bokuto snickered.

"You know it," Oikawa winked saucily, but then sobered. "Well, I mean, I hope so. The guy's kinda amazing, but it has been like... a week since we began dating. So I can't say for sure. Jumping his bones isn't a good measure of how great of a partner he is-"

"Okay, Oikawa, you can stop there," Kuroo rolled his eyes in amusement.

"It's what you get for the whole Doritos stunt."

"Will you EVER let that go?" Bokuto groaned, but the shit-eating smirk on Oikawa's face was all the answer they needed.

"Anyway. Iwaizumi's divorced and has a kid, so me having a kid isn't a problem for him. His kid's fond of Hinata as well." He probably didn't want to mention how he felt about Iwaizumi's son, though. "We get along nicely, so I'm not worried. Iwaizumi's a teddy bear, though he may not seem like it, and he's really god with children. All in all, I'm just saying that I hope we work out, because if there's one person who can re-create the family that Hinata wants and deserves, it's Iwaizumi."

"And for you? What are your plans in relation to this family ideal of yours?" Suga asked.

"I... I want to get along with Tobio," Oikawa admitted, deflating slightly under Bokuto's and Kuroo's snickers. "Don't laugh! The kid hates my guts for some reason. But if we're gonna be a family, I'm gonna have to get to know him and get along with him. Maybe I'll offer to babysit for Iwaizumi if he ever has a guy's night out, so I can see Tobio without Iwaizumi around. We'll see. Other than that, I'm all set career-wise, so I don't have any education left... I might return to university once I settle down for an extra degree, but that's in like... years from now. I won't think about it now. Other than that... maybe I'll invest in a driving license. Iwa-chan has a car and it's an old piece of shit, but something tells me we'll be using it a lot."

"You don't need a driver's license to make good use of the back seat, though," Kuroo whistled innocently, laughing when Oikawa caught onto the joke and squeaked in embarrassment.

"That was one time! And it was because you guys were in my living room!"

"Stop antagonizing him, geez," Daichi chided, though he couldn't say that he wasn't amused, either.

"Thank you, Daichi. At least one of you guys is nice to me," Oikawa muttered. "I suppose that's all anyway. My plan for the future is to restart the whole 'family' business from the beginning. And this time, I don't want to fuck it up. Before, that probably would've implied that I lie and hide my identity to protect the integrity of our family relations, but this time, I want to be honest, and free, and happy, and build a new family based on those principles."

"That sounds like a wonderful vision of the future, too. It's so great that you've found another person to help you get there," Suga encouraged him and then turned to all of them, one by one. "All of you are looking up. The first week you came in here, you were awkward and riddled with problems, but now look at you. You've confronted your past and shaped your present, and now you're ready to take on the future. There is nothing you can't do as you are now, united in a common battle on four different battlefields."

"That's very true," Kuroo hummed in assent. "In the end, this support group was only really effective because we were able to work together and get along. Not just that, but we also befriended one another, and we've become precious contacts for one another outside of this group."

"Yeah, it's really awesome! I've never had best friends like you guys," Bokuto agreed excitedly. "You make me feel safe and understand me in a way no one has ever even been willing to understand me before. I would've been a goner without you guys!"

"It's wonderful how we all ended up looking out for one another," Oikawa added. "All of us are missing something, or many things from our lives. But whatever that missing piece was, I feel like somehow, we were able to bridge the gaps for one another and fill the holes, perhaps not perfectly, but enough to keep moving on. All of us have expressed some sort of feeling of abandonment after becoming single fathers, but we plugged the gaps in one another's loneliness and looked out for one another like an actual family would. In that sense, we're more family than we are friends. Especially since we know so much about one another now."

"Amen to that," Daichi finally nodded. "We did it. Our lives aren't sorted out yet. They're not fixed, they're not magically put together just because we spent 6 weeks working together to realign the messes we'd created. However, we did succeed in putting things back in place for one another, and that's already a huge step in fixing whatever went wrong. And none of us have given up, no matter the circumstances, no matter how hard it became to keep fighting, and in that sense, I think we're all superheroes."

They were all strong, strong enough to move past their hardships and work towards a better tomorrow.

"We're all super-daddies," he continued, knowing he had their full attention. "Our children will perhaps not remember how hard this period of their life was, but they'll always remember how their dads were always there for them. And maybe they won't even recall any memories, but they sure as hell will feel it in their bones, that their dads are worthy of their trust, and that they've protected them so far and will continue to do so."

"We're building a better future for our kids and ourselves. The goal is to recreate trust where it was lost," Oikawa nodded, a satisfied smile on his face.

"And since we've come so far united, something tells me we won't be able to keep going divided," Bokuto added, crossing his arms proudly.

"Well, I don't think we'll have a problem moving forward anymore. We're done being held back by fate, destiny, chance, or whatever it was bogging us down in the past," Kuroo concluded.

"You're totally right," Daichi nodded, finding new inspiration in his friend's words. All of them seemed to be finding hope in these bright promises of bright tomorrows. "But what makes you say that?"

"I dunno," Kuroo shrugged, and the faraway look in his eyes said everything he couldn't express in words. "It's just a feeling. It feels like the tides have turned."

"How so?" Suga asked, one last question, one last time, one last opportunity for them to open their innermost thoughts to the circle of people they considered a family.

"I think I get what you mean," Oikawa whispered, and glanced at all of them, at all of their hopeful, determined gazes, letting a genuine grin usher in his next words like spring after a long and tedious winter. "After all this time, it finally feels like we're fighting with all the odds on our side."

* * *

**Author's Note**

**Aaaaand there we go. The end. Tadaaaa. **

**Note how every father is very very different in terms of, well, everything! Daichi reconciled with his ex, Oikawa didn't, Bokuto confronted his ex and Kuroo's is dead. Oikawa wants a new family with Iwaizumi, Bokuto considers the guys his family, Kuroo doesn't wanna reconstruct (unless you're wearing KuroKen shipping glasses) and Daichi's more into domestic partnership with Suga. Daichi has a smooth ride in front of him, Kuroo's future is probably gonna be hella tough, Bokuto's is uncertain but getting better, and Oikawa's in a whole other kind of challenge. Etc etc etc. All the dads have suuuper different circumstances, but this fic was all about uniting them despite the differences. And here they are. **

**I didn't wanna give Noya proper ADHD. Instead, I modeled him after children who are very talented, but don't know how to express the talent. Noya probably has a really large hippocampus and has a freaky memory, but only for things he wants to remember. So he doesn't have attention span problems, he literally doesn't care enough to store information in his brain and respond to it. Also, the whole 'daycare' section was almost a retelling of what happened during one of my internships at the daycare I was assigned at. Kids are precious. **

**I'm tired. I hope you enjoyed AAO. Gosh, I enjoyed writing it a lot and I will definitely write some oneshots for the universe later. Thank you so much for reading so far, I'm so happy people enjoy my work. If you have any comments to leave, please don't be shy and review! See you guys!**

**-SS**


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